From The Hotline Latest Edition for Monday, May 5,2008

LOUISIANA 01

When Did You Sneak In?

Mon. May 5, 2008


State Sen. Steve Scalise (R) defeated Univ. of New Orleans prof. Gilda Reed (D), ex-Jefferson Parish Clerk of Courts/'06 SEN candidate "Skip" Galan (I) and '07 GOV candidate Anthony Gentile (I) to win the seat vacated by ex-Rep./Gov. Bobby Jindal (R). Results with 100% of precincts reporting (LA Sec/State, 5/4).

LA-01 Special Election

-                votes         %age
Scalise (R)      33,867        75.1%
Reed (D)         10,142        22.5
Galan (I)           786         1.7
Gentile (I)         280          .6

The Commander's Palace

Scalise's "commanding victory" in the 5/3 race "extends" GOP control of LA's "decidedly conservative" CD "into its fourth decade." At his victory party, he "kissed his wife then his daugher, paid homage" to Jindal and declared victory. He then "thanked his opponents" for running a "clean and issues-based campaign."

Meanwhile, Reed thanked her supporters, saying "what her campaign lacked in dollars it made up for in grit." She "addressed much of her concession speech" to Scalise, "urging him to be a forceful advocate" for the CD. Reed: "We need you to fight for hurricane recovery like you said you would, but we need you to do it more forcefully than you did in Baton Rouge" (Rainey, New Orleans Times-Picayune, 5/4).