The jury in the Will Smith trial has found the shooter guilty of manslaughter. Cardell Hayes could have been convicted of second-degree murder for the road rage killing of the popular former Saints player. Deuce McAllister was a teammate of Smith’s and says this is not a win for anyone…:
CUT 5 (10) “for everybody”
Hayes faces up to 40 years in prison.

Now that Republican State Treasurer John Kennedy was elected U.S. Senator, he says he’ll work to solve Louisiana’s problems. Jeff Palermo has more…:
CUT 1 (25) “I’m Jeff Palermo”

John Kennedy’s victory in the US Senate race gives the GOP a larger majority, 52 republicans to 48 democrats in the upper chamber. ULM political science professor Dr. Joshua Stockley says this is an important win for Republicans, because it gives them a larger cushion to deal with issues as they arise in the Senate…:
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But he feels both parties can agree on things like infrastructure and reducing the national deficit.

But he says one of the close votes will be no doubt be on the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare. Two recent polls in Louisiana show people here would like to see President-elect Trump come up with a new healthcare plan. Pollster Ed Chervenak says the poll also found men are more interested in the complete repeal of the Affordable Care Act than women:
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The poll conducted by the University of New Orleans Survey Research Center found 66-percent of Louisianians support the repeal of Obamacare.

Cardell Hayes has been found guilty of manslaughter in the shooting death of former Saints star Will Smith. Former New Orleans running back Deuce McAllister was there when the verdict was read and says this was not a win for anybody…:
cut 4 (07) “really win”
Hayes was also found guilty of attempted manslaughter for shooting Smith’s wife during the April 9th road rage incident in New Orleans.

Now that Republican State Treasurer John Kennedy has been elected as U.S. Senator, he plans to tackle some of Louisiana’s problems in Washington D.C. Kennedy says it’s time for a change and the first thing he will fight for is additional relief for our flood victims..:
Cut 10 (06) “afford it”
Kennedy says he will also fight to bring more jobs to Louisiana.

Two different polls show a majority of Louisiana residents agree with repealing the Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare. Pollster Ed Chervenak says in a telephone survey conducted by the University of New Orleans Survey Research Center, 66-percent of 776 people polled support the idea…:
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A poll by Southern Media and Opinion Research found 56-percent of Louisianans surveyed believe President-elect Trump should repeal Obamacare and replace it with a new healthcare plan.

And also in the end of Louisiana’s long election cycle this year, in addition to Republican John Kennedy winning the US Senate race, two other members of the GOP prevailed. In the two US House runoffs, state Representative Mike Johnson was elected to the 4th District, and in District 3, it was Clay Higgins, aka the Cajun John Wayne.

The Cardell Hayes trial is restarting this morning and many are wondering if he will take the stand in his defense. Hayes is accused of killing former Saints defensive end Will Smith in a road rage incident in April. Hayes’ attorneys are claiming he shot Smith in self defense because he was scared Smith was returning to his vehicle to get a gun. Saints Quarterback Drew Brees is in the courtroom next to Smith’s widow, Racquel, who took the stand yesterday and was shot in he leg that night by Hayes.

President-elect Donald Trump rallied in Baton Rouge to entourage Louisianians to get out and vote for U.S. Senate candidate Republican John Kennedy. The future president told supporters he needs Kennedy in Washington to help accomplish their agenda, including protecting our borders.
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Democrat Foster Campbell spent Friday meeting with reporters in Baton Rouge and then had campaign stops in Alexandria and Lake Charles.

The election cycle in Louisiana finally ends today and voter turnout is expected to be significantly lower than in the November primary. Secretary of State Tom Schedler says early voter turnout was much lower for the runoff than in the general election.
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He predicts turnout will be around 30-percent. The polls are open until 8 p.m.

Audio has been released of a phone conversation between 3rd Congressional District candidate Clay Higgins and his ex-wife, where Higgins suggests winning the election will help him pay child support. Higgins reportedly owes more than $100-thousand in child support to ex-wife Rosemary Rothkamm-Hambrice. UL- Lafayette Political Science Professor Pearson Cross says Higgins’ personal issues that have been arising throughout the campaign are problems that the public can relate to.
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FEMA has refused Governor John Bel Edwards’ request to lower the state’s share of disaster response cost for the March flooding that affected the central and northern part of Louisiana down to 10-percent. The state is required to pay 10-percent of the response from the August flooding and 25-percent from the March flooding. Officials with the Edwards’ administration believe the floods should be grouped together because of the destruction.

President-elect Donald Trump laid out the agenda for his presidency during a speech in front of supporters in Baton Rouge. Jeff Palermo has the story…
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Voter turnout is expected to be low for today’s election. Secretary of State Tom Schedler urges everyone to get out and vote because there are 156 propositions across 44 parishes up for vote, and the US Senate race will be on the ballot statewide. He says even though many parishes only have one item on the ballot, some precincts still have heated races.

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The polls are open until 8 p.m.
Governor John Bel Edwards wants to develop a tax structure that’s fair, predictable and able to pay for state services as Louisiana is facing another year of budget problems. Earlier in the year the legislature approved 1.5 billion dollars in tax increases to help fill a huge budget gap when Edwards walked into office. But he says that wasn’t enough to stop cuts to government services and the people of Louisiana deserve more…
cut 12 (08) “that problem”

Secretary of State Tom Schedler expects extremely low voter turnout for today’s election. Schedler says he predicts turnout will about about 30-percent. He says voter fatigue has hit, and now people are more worried about getting ready for the holidays.
cut 4 (09) “is elsewhere”

Schedler says there are 156 propositions across 44 parishes up for vote, and the US Senate race will be on the ballot statewide. The polls are open until 8 p.m.

Governor John Bel Edwards says it’s time to create a tax structure that’s fair and predictable as the state is facing an additional year of budget problems. Lawmakers learned earlier this week that the state has a budget deficit that’s grown to 600-million dollars and Edwards says there’s one part of the tax code he would like to fix…
cut 11 (07) “better”

A University of New Orleans Survey Research Center survey finds Republican John Kennedy remains substantially ahead of Democrat Foster Campbell in today’s U.S. Senate election. Since the primary, Campbell has been trailing behind Kennedy by double digits in every poll published. Pollster Ed Chervenak says Campbell has been hurt by the lack of strong support within the Democratic Party.
Cut 7 (09) “as Republicans.”

Two state football championship games were held in the Mercedes Benz Superdome last night. In Class One-A, Logansport scored 28 points in the 4th quarter to beat Haynesville 34-28. Logansport was down 28-6 entering the final quarter. In the Class Two-A title game, Sterlington won its first football title by shocking top-seeded and undefeated Madison Prep 28-27. Three more championship games will be held today. The 4a title game is a rematch of last year’s game won by Neville. West Monroe and Landry Walker face off for the 5A title.

Secretary of State Tom Schedler expects voter turnout to be low for today’s election. Michelle Southern has more…
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After meeting the President-elect Donald Trump in Baton Rouge yesterday, Governor John Bel Edwards was able to give him an update on the recovery efforts after the August flooding since his last visit. Edwards says they discussed what Louisiana needs in order to rebuild. He says the future president will play a pivotal role in helping the state receive additional funds of relief. The two agreed to meet again after Trump is inaugurated.

 
A new poll from the University of New Orleans Survey Research Center finds Republican U.S. Senate candidate John Kennedy continues to have a big lead over Democrat Foster Campbell in today’s election. UNO Pollster Ed Chervenak says out of 776 respondents, 62-percent of favored Kennedy while 33-percent supported Campbell.
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Audio has been released of a conversation between 3rd Congressional District candidate Capt. Clay Higgins and his ex-wife, where Higgins suggested winning the election would help him pay child support. UL-Lafayette political science professor Pearson Cross says it’s obvious Higgins didn’t know the phone conversation was being recorded so it’s hard to say how it impacts the election.
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