United States Senate election in Louisiana, 2016
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December 10, 2016 |
November 8, 2016 |
John Kennedy  |
David Vitter |
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Cook Political Report: Solid R[1] Sabato's Crystal Ball: Likely R[2] Rothenberg & Gonzales: Safe R[3] |
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Voters in Louisiana elected one member to the U.S. Senate in the election on December 10, 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.[4]
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.
| Candidate Filing Deadline | Primary Election | General Election |
|---|---|---|
Incumbent: The election filled the Class 3 Senate seat held by David Vitter (R). Vitter ran for Governor of Louisiana in 2015 but was defeated in the general election.[5] Following incumbent Vitter's loss in the gubernatorial race, he announced that he would not seek re-election to the Senate in 2016.[6]
Election results
General election
| 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 | ||||
Primary election
| 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 | ||||
Candidates
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General election candidates: John Kennedy   Foster Campbell |
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Primary candidates: Caroline Fayard - Lawyer[7] Foster Campbell - Public service commissioner[8] Josh Pellerin - Businessman[9] Peter Williams[10] Derrick Edwards[11] - Lawyer and disability advocate Kaitlin Marone - Comedian[12] Gary Landrieu[4] Vinny Mendoza[4] John Fleming - U.S. Rep.[13] Charles Boustany Jr. - U.S. Rep.[13] Rob Maness - Retired colonel[14] Joseph Cao - Former congressman[15] John Kennedy - State treasurer[16] David Duke - Former KKK leader[17] Donald Crawford[4] Charles Marsala Thomas Clements (Libertarian)[18] Le Roy Gillam (Libertarian)[4] Troy Hebert (Independent) - Former state sen.[19] Beryl Billiot (Independent)[4] Arden Wells (Independent)[4] William Robert Lang Jr. (Other)[4] Gregory Taylor Jr. (Other)[4] |
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Not running: |
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Withdrew: Abhay Patel[21][22] |
Race background
Incumbent David Vitter (R) sought election in Louisiana's gubernatorial race in 2015. Following his defeat in that race, he announced that he would not seek re-election to the Senate in 2016.[6]
Endorsements
Foster Campbell
- Governor John Bel Edwards[23]
Caroline Fayard
John Fleming
- The Club for Growth - "Fleming has worked in Washington for pro-growth legislation as a founding member of the House Freedom Caucus. In a crowded field of big-government Republicans and Democrats, Fleming stands out as a true economic conservative."[24]
John Kennedy
- Former Gov. Mike Foster[25]
Rob Maness
- Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser[26]
Polls
| Louisiana Senate - Open Primary | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poll | John Kennedy |
Charles Boustany | Caroline Fayard | Foster Campbell | John Fleming | Rob Maness | David Duke | Joseph Cao | Joshua Pellerin | Troy Hebert | Margin of Error | Sample Size | |||||||
| FOX 8/Mason-Dixon October 20, 2016 | 24% | 11% | 12% | 19% | 10% | 3% | 5% | 0% | 0% | 0% | +/-4.4 | 625 | |||||||
| SMOR September 15-17, 2016 | 16.9% | 15.2% | 11.4% | 9.2% | 8.3% | 3.3% | 3.1% | 1.7% | 1.7% | 0.8% | +/-4.4 | 500 | |||||||
| Note: A "0%" finding means the candidate was not a part of the poll. The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org | |||||||||||||||||||
Media
Charles Boustany
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Foster Campbell
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Caroline Fayard
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John Fleming
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John Kennedy
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Rob Maness
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Abhay Patel
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Election history
2014
On December 6, 2014, Bill Cassidy (R) defeated incumbent Mary Landrieu (D) in the general election. Cassidy and Landrieu were forced into a general election after neither candidate won the majority of votes in the primary on November 6, 2014.
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Mary Landrieu Incumbent | 44.1% | 561,210 | |
| Republican | Bill Cassidy |
55.9% | 712,379 | |
| Total Votes | 1,273,589 | |||
| Source: Louisiana Secretary of State | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Mary Landrieu Incumbent |
42.1% | 619,402 | |
| Democratic | Wayne Ables | 0.8% | 11,323 | |
| Democratic | Vallian Senegal | 0.3% | 3,831 | |
| Democratic | William Waymire Jr. | 0.3% | 4,673 | |
| Republican | Bill Cassidy |
41% | 603,084 | |
| Republican | Rob Maness | 13.8% | 202,556 | |
| Republican | Thomas Clements | 1% | 14,173 | |
| Libertarian | Brannon Lee McMorris | 0.9% | 13,034 | |
| Total Votes | 1,472,076 | |||
| Source: Mary Landrieu and Bill Cassidy headed to a runoff election on December 6, 2014. Louisiana Secretary of State | ||||
2010
On November 2, 2010, Vitter (R) won re-election to the United States Senate. He defeated Charlie Melancon (D), Michael Karlton Brown (I), R. A. "Skip" Galan (I), Milton Gordon (I), Sam Houston Melton, Jr. (I), Randall Todd Hayes (L), William R. McShan (Reform), Michael Lane "Mike" Spears (I), Ernest D. Woolon (I), William Robert "Bob" Lang, Jr. (I) and Thomas G. "Tommy" LaFarge (I) in the primary election.[27]
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.
| U.S. Senate, Louisiana Primary Election, 2010 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | David Vitter Incumbent |
56.6% | 715,415 | |
| Democratic | Charlie Melancon | 37.7% | 476,572 | |
| Independent | Michael Karlton Brown | 0.8% | 9,973 | |
| Independent | R. A. "Skip" Galan | 0.6% | 7,474 | |
| Independent | Milton Gordon | 0.4% | 4,810 | |
| Independent | Sam Houston Melton, Jr. | 0.3% | 3,780 | |
| Libertarian | Randall Todd Hayes | 1.1% | 13,957 | |
| Reform | William R. McShan | 0.5% | 5,879 | |
| Independent | Michael Lane "Mike" Spears | 0.7% | 9,190 | |
| Independent | Ernest D. Woolon | 0.6% | 8,167 | |
| Independent | William Robert "Bob" Lang, Jr. | 0.5% | 5,734 | |
| Independent | Thomas G. "Tommy" LaFarge | 0.3% | 4,043 | |
| Total Votes | 1,264,994 | |||
Campaign contributions
David Vitter
| David Vitter (2016) Campaign Finance Reports | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report | Date Filed | Beginning Balance | Total Contributions for Reporting Period | Expenditures | Cash on Hand | ||||
| April Quarterly[28] | April 13, 2015 | $41,142 | $70,910 | $(39,599) | $72,453 | ||||
| July Quarterly[29] | July 15, 2015 | $72,453 | $39,181 | $(22,774) | $88,859 | ||||
| Running totals | |||||||||
| $110,091 | $(62,373) | ||||||||
John Fleming
| John Fleming (2016) Campaign Finance Reports | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report | Date Filed | Beginning Balance | Total Contributions for Reporting Period | Expenditures | Cash on Hand | ||||
| April Quarterly[30] | April 14, 2015 | $1,090,755 | $383,957 | $(70,449) | $1,404,264 | ||||
| July Quarterly[31] | July 14, 2015 | $2,404,264 | $742,653 | $(71,382) | $2,075,535 | ||||
| Running totals | |||||||||
| $1,126,610 | $(141,831) | ||||||||
Important dates and deadlines
- See also: Louisiana elections, 2016
The calendar below lists important dates for political candidates in Louisiana in 2016.
| Dates and requirements for candidates in 2016 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Deadline | Event type | Event description | |
| September 8, 2015 | Campaign finance | "180th day prior to primary report" due | |
| December 2, 2015 | Ballot access | Qualifying period opens for presidential preference and municipal primaries | |
| December 4, 2015 | Ballot access | Qualifying period closes for presidential preference and municipal primaries | |
| December 7, 2015 | Campaign finance | "90th day prior to primary report" due | |
| February 4, 2016 | Campaign finance | "30th day prior to primary report" due | |
| February 24, 2016 | Campaign finance | "10th day prior to primary report" due | |
| March 5, 2016 | Election date | Presidential preference primary and municipal primary elections | |
| March 15, 2016 | Campaign finance | "Election Day expenditures report" due | |
| March 23, 2016 | Campaign finance | "10th day prior to general report" due | |
| April 2, 2016 | Election date | Municipal general election | |
| April 12, 2016 | Campaign finance | "Election Day expenditures report" due | |
| May 12, 2016 | Campaign finance | "40th day after general report" due | |
| May 12, 2016 | Campaign finance | "180th day prior to primary report" due | |
| July 20, 2016 | Ballot access | Qualifying period opens for open primary election | |
| July 22, 2016 | Ballot access | Qualifying period closes for open primary election | |
| August 10, 2016 | Campaign finance | "90th day prior to primary report" due | |
| October 11, 2016 | Campaign finance | "30th day prior to primary report" due | |
| October 29, 2016 | Campaign finance | "10th day prior to primary report" due | |
| November 8, 2016 | Election date | Open primary election | |
| November 18, 2016 | Campaign finance | "Election Day expenditures report" due | |
| November 30, 2016 | Campaign finance | "10th day prior to general report" due | |
| December 10, 2016 | Election date | Open general election | |
| December 20, 2016 | Campaign finance | "Election Day expenditures report" due | |
| January 19, 2017 | Campaign finance | "40th day after general report" due | |
| February 15, 2017 | Campaign finance | "Annual report" due | |
| Sources: Louisiana Secretary of State, "2016 Elections," June 2014 Louisiana Ethics Administration Program, "Schedule of Reporting and Filing Dates for Candidates and PACs Supporting or Opposing Candidates, Primary Election–March 5, 2016, General Election–April 2, 2016," accessed June 30, 2015 Louisiana Ethics Administration Program, "Schedule of Reporting and Filing Dates for Candidates and PACs Supporting or Opposing Candidates, Primary Election–November 8, 2016, General Election–December 10, 2016 | |||
See also
- United States House of Representatives elections in Louisiana, 2016
- United States Senate elections, 2016
- David Vitter
Footnotes
- ↑ Cook Political Report, "2016 Senate Race Ratings for July 11, 2016," accessed July 19, 2016
- ↑ Sabato's Crystal Ball, "2016 Senate," accessed July 18, 2016
- ↑ Rothenberg & Gonzales Political Report, "Senate Ratings," accessed July 19, 2016
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 Louisiana Secretary of State, "Candidate Inquiry," accessed July 25, 2016
- ↑ Vitter for Louisiana, "David Vitter," accessed January 27, 2015
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Nola.com, "David Vitter won't run for his U.S. Senate seat again," November 21, 2015
- ↑ The Advocate, "Democrat Caroline Fayard launches U.S. Senate bid," February 4, 2016
- ↑ The Advocate, "Public Service Commissioner Foster Campbell running for the U.S. Senate," February 26, 2016
- ↑ The Advertiser, "Seeking Senate seat: Pellerin will run," February 24, 2016
- ↑ Email submission to Ballotpedia, June 4, 2016
- ↑ Derrick Edwards for Senate, "Home," accessed June 30, 2016
- ↑ Kaitlin Marone for Senate, "Home," accessed July 7, 2016
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 The Hill, "Louisiana Senate scramble begins," November 23, 2015
- ↑ National Journal, "Rob Maness Files for Louisiana Senate Race," December 8, 2015
- ↑ nola.com, "Joseph Cao enters Senate race for Vitter's seat, tells supporters by email," December 16, 2015
- ↑ WDSU, "Treasurer Kennedy joins fray to succeed Vitter," January 26, 2016
- ↑ USA Today, "Ex-KKK leader David Duke to run for U.S. Senate seat," July 22, 2016
- ↑ Thomas Clements for Senate, "Home," accessed July 20, 2016
- ↑ KATC.com, "Troy Hebert to run for Senate," January 28, 2016
- ↑ Nola.com, "David Vitter won't run for his U.S. Senate seat again," November 21, 2015
- ↑ KNOE.com, "Patel to announce candidacy for United States Senate," June 10, 2016
- ↑ The Acadiana Advocate, "Senate candidate Abhay Patel suspends race and endorses Charles Boustany," October 20, 2016
- ↑ The Advocate', "Gov. John Bel Edwards to host fundraiser for Foster Campbell," May 16, 2016
- ↑ LaPolitics, "Tuesday Tracker – Issue 51 – April 19, 2016," April 19, 2016
- ↑ The Town Talk, "Mike Foster endorses John Kennedy in U.S. Senate race," August 1, 2016
- ↑ Twitter, "Andrea Drusch," February 3, 2016
- ↑ U.S. Congress House Clerk, "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 2, 2010," accessed July 4, 2013
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "David Vitter April Quarterly," accessed August 12, 2015
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "David Vitter July Quarterly," accessed August 12, 2015
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "John Fleming April Quarterly," accessed August 12, 2015
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "John Fleming July Quarterly," accessed August 12, 2015
For information about public policy issues in the 2016 elections, see: Public policy in the 2016 elections!
Senators
Bill Cassidy (R)
John Kennedy (R)
Representatives
District 1
Steve Scalise (R)
District 2
Troy Carter (D)
District 3
Clay Higgins (R)
District 4
Mike Johnson (R)
District 5
Julia Letlow (R)
District 6
Cleo Fields (D)
Republican Party (6)
Democratic Party (2)
