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David Duke
David Duke was a 2016 Republican candidate who sought election to the U.S. Senate from Louisiana.[1] Duke is the founder and former grand wizard of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, a Louisiana-based chapter of the KKK. He served in the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1989 to 1993.[2]
Biography
Education
Duke earned a bachelor's degree in history from Louisiana State University and a Ph.D. in history from the Inter-Regional Academy of Personnel Management in Ukraine.[2]
Knights of the KKK and other groups founded
Duke founded the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan in Louisiana in 1974 and was the chapter's grand wizard. He left the chapter in 1980. The Daily Telegraph wrote that Duke told the publication in a 2009 interview that he left "because he disliked its associations with violence and could not stop the members of other Klan chapters from doing 'stupid or violent things.'"[3] He went on to form the National Association for the Advancement of White People in 1980 and the National Organization for European-American Rights in 2000.[4][5]
Electoral campaigns
Duke was elected as a Republican to the Louisiana House of Representatives in the special election of 1989, winning the runoff election 51 percent to 49 percent against John Treen (R), the other top vote-getter in the state's general election.[6] The Daily Beast described the race, writing, "Duke, who touted himself as a pro-life fiscal conservative, was known as an ex-Klan leader; he eschewed overtly racist language and instead pointed to crime in the city, criticizing affirmative action and minority set-asides."[7] Duke served in the House until 1993.[2]
Duke ran unsuccessfully for the Louisiana State Senate in 1975 and 1979, for governor of Louisiana in 1991, for the U.S. House in 1999, and for the U.S. Senate in 1990, 1996, and 2016. He also ran for president unsuccessfully in 1988 and 1992.[8]
Elections
2016
Heading into the election, Ballotpedia rated Louisiana's U.S. Senate race as safely Republican. The seat was open following incumbent David Vitter's decision to retire. A total of 24 candidates filed to run and competed in the primary election on November 8, 2016. John Kennedy (R) and Foster Campbell (D) took the top two spots in the election, advancing to the general election on December 10, 2016. Kennedy subsequently defeated Campbell in the general election.[9]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican |  John Kennedy |
60.7% | 536,191 | |
| Democratic | Foster Campbell | 39.3% | 347,816 | |
| Total Votes | 884,007 | |||
| Source: Louisiana Secretary of State | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | John Kennedy |
25% | 482,591 | |
| Democratic | Foster Campbell |
17.5% | 337,833 | |
| Republican | Charles Boustany | 15.4% | 298,008 | |
| Democratic | Caroline Fayard | 12.5% | 240,917 | |
| Republican | John Fleming | 10.6% | 204,026 | |
| Republican | Rob Maness | 4.7% | 90,856 | |
| Republican | David Duke | 3% | 58,606 | |
| Democratic | Derrick Edwards | 2.7% | 51,774 | |
| Democratic | Gary Landrieu | 2.4% | 45,587 | |
| Republican | Donald Crawford | 1.3% | 25,523 | |
| Republican | Joseph Cao | 1.1% | 21,019 | |
| Independent | Beryl Billiot | 1% | 19,352 | |
| Libertarian | Thomas Clements | 0.6% | 11,370 | |
| Independent | Troy Hebert | 0.5% | 9,503 | |
| Democratic | Josh Pellerin | 0.4% | 7,395 | |
| Democratic | Peter Williams | 0.4% | 6,855 | |
| Democratic | Vinny Mendoza | 0.3% | 4,927 | |
| Independent | Kaitlin Marone | 0.2% | 4,108 | |
| Libertarian | Le Roy Gillam | 0.2% | 4,067 | |
| Republican | Charles Marsala | 0.2% | 3,684 | |
| Independent | Arden Wells | 0.1% | 1,483 | |
| Independent | Bob Lang | 0.1% | 1,424 | |
| Independent | Gregory Taylor | 0.1% | 1,151 | |
| Total Votes | 1,932,059 | |||
| Source: Louisiana Secretary of State | ||||
Duke garnered 3 percent of the vote in the general election.[1]
Remarks on Donald Trump
On his radio show on February 25, 2016, Duke said to his audience that "voting against Donald Trump at this point is really treason to your heritage." He added, "I’m not saying I endorse everything about Trump, in fact I haven’t formally endorsed him. But I do support his candidacy, and I support voting for him as a strategic action. I hope he does everything we hope he will do."[10] On February 28, Trump was asked about Duke's comments. Trump responded, "I don't know -- did he endorse me, or what's going on? Because I know nothing about David Duke; I know nothing about white supremacists."[11] On March 3, Trump said, "David Duke is a bad person, who I disavowed on numerous occasions over the years. ... I disavowed him in the past, I disavow him now."[12]
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms David Duke Louisiana Senate. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Louisiana Secretary of State, "Tues Nov 8 2016, Statewide," accessed January 31, 2018
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 DavidDuke.com, "Meet the Real Person: A Short Biography of Dr. David Duke," October 6, 2013
- ↑ The Daily Telegraph, "David Duke: Nick Griffin was 'lynched' on Question Time," October 23, 2009
- ↑ Encyclopedia.com, "National Association For The Advancement Of White People," accessed January 31, 2018
- ↑ Nofear.net, "Home," archived February 29, 2000
- ↑ Louisiana Secretary of State, "Sat Feb 18 1989, Legislative," accessed January 31, 2018
- ↑ The Daily Beast, "The Louisiana Racists Who Courted Steve Scalise," January 3, 2015
- ↑ Project Gutenberg, "Electoral History of David Duke," accessed January 31, 2018
- ↑ Louisiana Secretary of State, "Candidate Inquiry," accessed July 25, 2016
- ↑ USA Today, "Former Ku Klux Klan leader declares support for Donald Trump," February 25, 2016
- ↑ CNN, "Donald Trump stumbles on David Duke, KKK," February 28, 2016
- ↑ CNN, "Trump denounces David Duke, KKK," March 3, 2016
