Wesley Bishop
Wesley T. Bishop was a Democratic member of the Louisiana State Senate, representing District 4. He was first elected to the chamber in 2015 and resigned in January 2020.[1]
Bishop was a member of the Louisiana House of Representatives, representing District 99 from 2011 to 2016. He was elected to the chamber in a special election on January 22, 2011.
Biography
Bishop earned his B.S. from Southern University at New Orleans, his M.P.A. from the University of Mississippi and his J.D. from Ohio State University. His professional experience includes working as an attorney, university administrator, assistant vice chancellor for academic affairs and assistant professor of criminal justice at Southern University at New Orleans (SUNO) and partner at Spears and Spears Law Firm.
Committee assignments
2019-2020
Bishop was assigned to the following committees:
- Joint Legislative Budget Committee
- Judiciary A Committee
- Senate & Governmental Affairs Committee, Vice-Chairman
- Finance Committee
- Labor & Industrial Relations Committee
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Bishop served on the following committees:
| Louisiana committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Appropriations |
| • Education |
| • Municipal, Parochial and Cultural Affairs |
| • Joint Legislative Budget |
2012-2013
In the 2012-2013 legislative session, Bishop served on the following committees:
- Education
- Municipal, Parochial and Cultural Affairs
- Ways and Means
- Joint Legislative Capital Outlay Committee
2010-2011
In the 2010-2011 legislative session, Bishop served on the following committees:
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2019
- See also: Louisiana State Senate elections, 2019
Wesley Bishop did not file to run for re-election.
2015
- See also: Louisiana State Senate elections, 2015
Elections for the Louisiana State Senate took place in 2015. A primary election was held on October 24, 2015, with a general election held in districts where necessary on November 21, 2015. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was September 10, 2015, at 4:30 p.m. CDT.[2]
Louisiana elections use the Louisiana majority-vote system. All candidates compete in the same primary, and a candidate can win the election outright by receiving more than 50% of the vote. If no candidate does, the top two vote recipients from the primary advance to the general election, regardless of their partisan affiliation.
For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article. Wesley Bishop (D) defeated R. Erich Caulfield (D) and Joe Swider (D) in the October 24 blanket primary.[3][4]
| Louisiana State Senate, District 4 Primary Election, 2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Wesley Bishop |
64.8% | 16,336 | |
| Democratic | R. Erich Caulfield | 24.6% | 6,195 | |
| Democratic | Joe Swider | 10.6% | 2,665 | |
| Total Votes | 25,196 | |||
2011 General
On October 22, 2011, Bishop won election to District 61 of the Louisiana House of Representatives. Due to redistricting, Bishop was moved to District 98, where he defeated Samuel Cowart (D) in the October 22 primary election. Because Louisiana uses a blanket primary system, a candidate can be declared the overall winner of the seat by garnering over 50 percent of the vote in the primary.[5]
| Louisiana House of Representatives, District 98 Blanket Primary, 2011 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Wesley Bishop Incumbent |
81.6% | 4,378 | |
| Democratic | Samuel Cowart | 18.4% | 989 | |
| Total Votes | 5,367 | |||
2011 Special
Bishop defeated Roland Barthe (D) and Willie Jones (D) in the District 101 special election for the Louisiana House of Representatives.[6]
| Louisiana House of Representatives Special Election, District 101 (2011) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| Wesley Bishop (D)
|
1,294 | |||
| Roland Barthe (D) | 226 | |||
| Willie Jones (D) | 204 | |||
Campaign themes
2011
On his 2011 special election campaign site, (dead link) Bishop outlined his campaign's theme:
- "It's no secret that our city is experiencing some tough times. Since 2005, the residents of New Orleans East have waited for the promise of schools, hospitals, restaurants and other basic services. Five years later, we still sit without access to basic services while neighboring areas thrive. Something is not right with this picture... As a 33 year resident of New Orleans East, I am well aware of the problems we continue to face. As someone who has served as an attorney, educator and community leader in both the Spring Lake and Academy Park subdivisions, I am confident that I have the ability and the vision that is needed to bring about the change necessary to move New Orleans and Louisiana forward."
Campaign finance summary
Ballotpedia currently provides campaign finance data for all federal- and state-level candidates from 2020 and later. We are continuously working to expand our data to include prior elections. That information will be published here as we acquire it. If you would like to help us provide this data, please consider donating to Ballotpedia.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Louisiana scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2020
In 2020, the Louisiana State Legislature was in session from March 9 to June 1. The session was suspended from March 31 through May 4. A special session convened from June 1 to June 30 and from September 28 to October 23.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to social issues.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
2019
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show]. |
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In 2019, the Louisiana State Legislature was in session from April 8 through June 6.
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2018
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show]. |
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In 2018, the Louisiana State Legislature was in session from March 12 through May 18.
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2017
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show]. |
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In 2017, the Louisiana State Legislature was in session from April 10 through June 8. The legislature held its first special session from February 13 to February 22. The legislature held its second special session from June 8 to June 16.
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2016
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show]. |
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In 2016, the Louisiana State Legislature was in session from March 14 through June 6. A special session was held from February 14 to March 9 to address the state's budget gap. A second special session was held from June 6 to June 23.
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2015
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show]. |
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In 2015, the Louisiana State Legislature was in session from April 13 through June 11.
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2014
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2014, click [show]. |
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In 2014, the Louisiana State Legislature was in session from March 10 through June 3.
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2013
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show]. |
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In 2013, the Louisiana State Legislature was in session from April 8 to June 6.
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2012
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2012, click [show]. |
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In 2012, the Louisiana State Legislature was in session from March 12 through June 4.
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Noteworthy events
Bishop goes on paid leave after federal charge
Bishop went on paid leave from his position at Southern University at New Orleans (SUNO) after a federal charge was filed against him on November 8, 2019. According to Fox 8, "Bishop was charged Friday in a bill of information for making a false statement to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. In paperwork obtained by FOX 8, Bishop received a $188,000 forgivable loan from HUD and in return, he promised to provide affordable housing to low-income residents at a four-plex he owned in New Orleans East. Prosecutors allege Bishop falsified lease documents and no one was living in the units."[10]
On January 21, 2020, Bishop pleaded guilty to a felony charge of making false statements to a federal agency and resigned from his position as associate vice chancellor at SUNO.[1]
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Bishop and his wife, Shannon, have one child.
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for Wesley + Bishop + Louisiana + Legislature
See also
- Louisiana State Senate
- Senate Committees
- Louisiana State Legislature
- Joint Committees
- Louisiana state legislative districts
External links
- Louisiana State Senate - Senator Wesley Bishop
- Campaign website
- Personal website
- Profile from Open States
- nola.com, "Three qualify for vacant state house seat in eastern New Orleans," December 15, 2010
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Fox 8, "Former State Senator Wesley Bishop pleads guilty to federal charge, resigns from SUNO," January 21, 2020
- ↑ Louisiana Secretary of State, "2015 Elections," accessed January 2, 2015
- ↑ Louisiana Secretary of State, "Candidate Inquiry," accessed October 13, 2015
- ↑ Louisiana Secretary of State, "Official Election Results," accessed November 1, 2015
- ↑ Louisiana Secretary of State, "Official Election Results," accessed January 11, 2016
- ↑ Louisiana Secretary of State, "January 22, 2011 special election results," accessed August 25, 2011
- ↑ Louisiana Family Forum, "2014 Senate Scorecard," accessed July 11, 2017
- ↑ Louisiana Family Forum, "2013 Senate Scorecard," accessed July 11, 2017
- ↑ Louisiana Family Forum, "2012 Senate Scorecard," accessed July 11, 2017
- ↑ Fox 8 Live, "State Sen. Wesley Bishop on paid leave from SUNO following federal charge," November 12, 2019
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Edwin Murray (D) |
Louisiana State Senate District 4 2016–2019 |
Succeeded by Jimmy Harris |
| Preceded by Charmaine Stiaes (D) |
Louisiana House of Representatives District 99 2012–2016 |
Succeeded by Jimmy Harris (D) |
| Preceded by Cedric Richmond (D) |
Louisiana House of Representatives District 101 2011–2012 |
Succeeded by Edward James |
