SHAWN WILSON ENTERS RACE- And so it is official as the long-awaited and anticipated announcement came yesterday morning – Shawn Wilson- who recently retired as Secretary of Louisiana’s Department of Transportation and Development formally announced his candidacy for Governor, and so far it appears Wilson will be the only major Democrat who will run for governor this year. Wilson’s campaign kicked off with a video posted on Facebook that highlights his years of government experience and willingness to collaborate with Republicans.
“. . . Louisiana needs a governor who will build bridges, not burn them. I’m Shawn Wilson, that’s the kind of leader that I’ve been and that is exactly the kind of governor that I promise to be,” Wilson said in his video presentation.
Wilson’s party affiliation will be a challenge as Governor John Bel Edwards who is term-limited has been the only Democrat elected to a statewide office since 2007. If elected as governor, Wilson would have the distinction of being the only African-American elected to statewide office in 150-years since the post-Civil War Reconstruction era.
Wilson has received Governor Edward’s endorsement which will likely make him the only Democrat as he joins a field crowded with four Republicans: Attorney General Jeff Landry who snagged the early endorsement of the State GOP, Treasurer John Schroder, state Senator Sharon Hewitt of Slidell, and state Rep. Richard Nelson of Mandeville. Another candidate –independent trial lawyer and minister Hunter Landry rounds the field off making for a total of six gubernatorial candidates so far.
LA TREASURER’S RACE - Former Louisiana Representative John Fleming has announced he will run for Louisiana State Treasurer. Fleming a Republican from Minden who more recently served as an economic advisor in the Trump White House made his plans known during an appearance on KTBS TV News in Shreveport Tuesday (03/07/23) morning.
Fleming had originally intended to make a bid for Lt. Governor but after the incumbent Billy Nungesser decided to run for re-election, Fleming shifted to the treasurer’s post as John Schroder made his announcement to run for Governor recently, thereby effectively vacating a chance for re-election.
Fleming is a doctor and Navy veteran who represented northwest Louisiana in Congress for eight years and was a founding member of the conservative U.S. House Freedom Caucus. He then ran for Louisiana’s open U.S. Senate seat in 2016, losing to Republican John Kennedy.
