Kennedy grew up in Zachary, La, near Baton Rouge. He graduated from Vanderbilt University and received law degrees from the University of Virginia and Oxford University in England.

Kennedy unseated the incumbent treasurer in 1999 and ran again unopposed in 2003. As treasurer, he manages the state's $5 billion bank account. He also oversaw the sale of 60 percent of the state's tobacco settlement and placed $1 billion in trust funds for health care, education and the Tuition Opportunity Program for Students, according to the state Department of the Treasury's Web site.

Kennedy was an adjunct professor of constitutional law at Louisiana State University Law School and a volunteer substitute for East Baton Rouge public schools. He has said he believes all elected officials should substitute teach for no pay at least three times a year.
Before becoming treasurer, Kennedy was secretary of the Louisiana Department of Revenue for three years. He also practiced law in a Baton Rouge and New Orleans law firm, and was special counsel to former Gov. Buddy Roemer.

When he entered the Senate race in February, Kennedy said, "This is a very critical election for the people of Louisiana. I'll bring new and challenging ideas to this race, and I look forward to a conversation with our people about how our state can grow and prosper in the new millennium."

He and his wife, Rebecca Ann Stulb Kennedy, live in Madisonville, La., with their son, Preston.

-- Compiled for the Online NewsHour by Larisa Epatko