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Shreveport Mayor Candidates In Run-Off, Arkansas Casino Measure Approved And More

ARK GOV RACE- Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson was re-elected for a second term,  He easily won re-election against opponent Jared Henderson.   Arkansas voters approved a constitutional amendment to allow the state to issue licenses for four full-fledged casinos, they also approved issue 2 on voter identification requirements and Issue 5 to raise the state minimum wage.

FOR TEXAS – Incumbent Governor Greg Abbot gets another term.  And Senator Ted Cruz narrowly defeated challenger Beto O’Rourke.

MAYOR RUN-OFF:  The City of Shreveport’s next mayor will be determined in a run-off as incumbent Mayor Ollie Tyler will face challenger / newcomer Adrian Perkins, Both candidates are Democrat, of the two- Perkins edged ahead with 28.8% of the vote to Tyler’s 23.8%  Just trailing the two frontrunners was Republican Jim Taliaferro with 20.5% of the vote.

RUNOFFS FOR MOST CITY COUNCIL SEATS–  Districts A through D will have runoffs with the exception of District E  as Republican James Flurry received 53% of the vote and wins that seat as did James Green who won District F  with 53% of the vote defeating incumbent Stephanie Lynch.

LA SECRETARY OF STATE -  There will be a run-off  between  Republican  Kyle Ardoin  and Democrat  Gwen Collins-Greenup.  Ardoin  has  been interim secretary of state after Steve Schedler stepped down months ago amid sexual harassment allegations. Ardoin is reported to have spent about quarter-million dollars on his campaign, whereas Collins-Greenup, an attorney reportedly spent around $1,500–Both  face each other in a -off in the December 8th.

LOUISIANA CONGRESSIONAL RACES - The fast story here is that Louisiana voters in all of Louisiana’s congressional districts re-elected their incumbments, five Republicans and one Democrat keep their seats and return to Washington. 

LA. CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS -  Louisiana voters approved all six constitutional amendments on the ballot.  One measure that received national attention Amendment 2 - requiring unanimous jury verdicts on felony trails was approved eliminating split-jury verdicts.

ONLINE FANTASY SPORTS BETTING -  The measure was a local option for all 64 parishes in Louisiana. Parishes with major cities such as Baton Rouge, New Orleans and Lafayette approved Online Fantasy Sports Betting.  In the Northern Part of the state parishes that approved the measure were: Bossier, Caddo, Lincoln, Ouachita.  In the more central region, Natchitoches and Rapides parishes approved online fantasy sports betting.  But voters in Sabine parish, 50% voted no on the measure.

Legislation to regulate online fantasy games betting  will be needed during the 2019 regular legislative session before fans can get started.  Lawmakers will hammer out rules on regulations and taxation. Revenue gains for the state are expected to be modest.  The session begins April 8.

To see how Louisiana voted click: LOUISIANA 2018 ELECTION RESULTS

Chuck Smith brings more than 30 years' broadcast and media experience to Red River Radio. He began his career as a radio news reporter and transitioned to television journalism and newsmagazine production. Chuck studied mass communications at Southern Arkansas University in Magnolia and motion picture / television production at the University of California at Los Angeles. He has also taught writing for television at York Technical College in Rock Hill, South Carolina and video / film production at Centenary College of Louisiana, Shreveport.