Luke Letlow and Lance Harris are set to face off on December 5th for the 5th Congressional District runoff. Matt Doyle has the story.
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Legal sports betting is coming soon to most Louisiana parishes. Jeff Palermo has the story…
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Two-point one million Louisiana voters turned out the vote for the 2020 Presidential election with 69-percent of registered voters casting their ballots, a slight increase from 2016. Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin is very pleased with how the process went despite the challenges of a pandemic and three hurricanes.
While the nation awaits results from six swing states to decide the fate of the presidential election Ardoin is extremely proud of his staff for their timely work. A key factor for prompt results in this election was the ability to begin prepping a record number of absentee ballots four days in advance.
It was a late night for election officials in Louisiana but compared to other states somewhat early, staff finished counting at 1 am this morning.
Ardoin and staff are now preparing for the December 5th runoff for the 5th congressional district, a constitutional amendment on the ballot, and several others.
And today is the last day to register to vote for the December 5th runoff. Early voting will return to seven days and normal hours or 8:30 am until 6 pm, but the COVID absentee ballot request remains in place.
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Two Republicans are prepping for a month-long sprint to the finish line in the 5th Congressional District runoff, a seat that came open earlier this year after Congressman Ralph Abraham retired.
Abraham’s former chief of staff Luke Letlow is the early favorite due to his fundraising prowess. He says he’s going to keep barnstorming across the northeast, Cenla, and Florida Parishes.
Letlow, who secured 33 percent of the vote Tuesday laid out his priorities should he be sent to Congress.
Alexandria State Representative Lance Harris will be a formidable challenger. He says voters will connect with his life experience as a business owner and state Republican leader.
Harris nabbed 16.6 percent of the vote, just 456 more votes than the third-place candidate and Democrat Sandra Christophe.
Harris served as the State House Republican Majority Caucus Chair and says while he and Letlow may share similar conservative views he has a record of getting them into law.
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55 of the state’s 64 parishes approved the November 3rd ballot measure that legalizes sports wagering. Ryan Berni of Louisiana Wins says over 65-percent of the voters statewide voted for the legalization of sports betting and now it’s up to lawmakers and the gaming control board to approve the rules and regulations
Berni says the Louisiana Legislature will develop a framework for sports wagering in the 2021 legislative session. He says it’s likely the state’s casinos will have sports betting parlors, but it’s also important to have the option to bet on your phone in parishes that approved the proposition
A Louisiana Economic Development Department study found that the state is losing as much as 330-million dollars in taxable revenue by not allowing legalized sports wagering. Berni says the state legislature will determine how the activity will be taxed and where the money will go…
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Public Service Commissioner Foster Campbell won re-election, garnering 53-percent of the PSC district five votes. Campbell says his consumer-focused approach helped him win re-election in North Louisiana and he plans to continue leading the charge on jailhouse phones.
Campbell a democrat won re-election to the commission in a majority red area of the state, defeating Republican challenger Shane Smiley. Campbell says he’ll also work to provide affordable internet service for constituents in North Louisiana.
Campbell credits his consumer-based focus to winning reelection and the fact that he returns phone calls.