A Public Policy Polling (PPP) survey released on September 23rd shows that Democrat John Bel Edwards could capitalize on voter dissatisfaction with Republicans to become Louisiana’s next Governor. John Bel Edwards and current Republican Senator David Vitter are projected to advance from an October 24th runoff election to face each other on November 21st.
In the multi-candidate race, John Bel Edwards is supported by 28 percent of voters to 27 percent who favor Vitter. Republicans Scott Angelle and Jay Dardenne poll 15 and 14 percent respectively. In Louisiana’s “jungle primary”, candidates from all parties run against each other simultaneously, and if no candidate secures a majority of the vote, a runoff election is held.
The good news for Democrats is that if John Bel Edwards and David Vitter face each other in a general election, Edwards would stand a strong chance of winning, despite Louisiana’s usually conservative tilt. Senator Vitter has become remarkably unpopular with his constituents, sporting an under water 34/51 unfavorable to favorable rating.
In a head to head contest, Louisiana voters prefer Edwards by a 50 to 38 margin. That represents a massive 30-point shift away from Vitter, who held a 50 to 32 lead over Edwards a year ago. Senator Vitter’s extreme right-wing agenda on issues important to women has cost him dearly with female voters. Women favor Edwards by a massive 57 to 30 percent margin.
To get more stories like this, subscribe to our newsletter The Daily.
While Vitter’s unpopularity is mostly self-inflicted, Republican Governor Bobby Jindal has not helped the Senator’s chances any, having run the state’s economy into the ground during his tenure in office. Jindal is extremely unpopular in the state, and his failure as Louisiana Governor is a drag on any Republicans chances to succeed him in office.
With a failed Republican Governor still making a fool of himself on the national presidential stage, and a back bench “family values” Senator whose most noteworthy achievement is getting caught soliciting prostitutes, as their likely candidate, the GOP may very well lose the Louisiana Governor’s race. Democrat John Bel Edwards is in a strong position to capitalize on the GOP’s failure, in order to become Louisiana’s next Governor.
Keith Brekhus is a progressive American who currently resides in Red Lodge, Montana. He is co-host for the Liberal Fix radio show. He holds a Master’s Degree in Sociology from the University of Missouri. In 2002, he ran for Congress as a Green Party candidate in the state of Missouri. In 2014, he worked as a field organizer for Democrat Ann Kirkpatrick’s successful re-election bid in Arizona’s 1st Congressional District. He can be followed on Twitter @keithbrekhus or on Facebook.
