 With its reputation as a swing state, Louisiana has set the stage for a competitive Senate race between incumbent Democrat Mary Landrieu and her Republican competitor, State Treasurer John Kennedy.
In the Senate, Landrieu is considered a conservative voice on the Democratic side of the aisle. Until August 2007, Kennedy was himself a Democrat, until he switched party affiliations to become a member of the GOP.
"I believe that Louisiana state government needs to change," Kennedy wrote in an e-mail to supporters about his decision to change parties.
Louisiana has seen its share of political shake-ups in recent months. In May, Republicans lost a congressional seat they controlled for 33 years when Democratic State Rep. Don Cazayoux defeated Republican Woody Jenkins in the race for Louisiana's sixth congressional district.
The impact of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita still reverberate in the region. The Greater New Orleans area saw a massive exodus of Democrats as part of a greater migration away from Louisiana.
More than a million people in southern Louisiana needed to find new housing after the devastating storms. As a result, the political influence of suburban and rural areas increased.
"You take the Ninth Ward out of that equation and you get a real shot of Republicans winning statewide office," Roy Fletcher, a political consultant from Shreveport, told the New York Times in 2005.
In June, Landrieu suffered a significant political loss when the U.S. House approved a compromise spending bill that eliminated the bulk of hurricane recovery assistance, according to The New Orleans Times-Picayune. Landrieu, who chairs the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Disaster Recovery Subcommittee, said she hopes to restore some of the assistance.
Meanwhile, Kennedy received the official backing of the Louisiana Republican Party. Roger Villere, chair of the state Republican Party, said the party's executive committee made the official endorsement after most state central committee members backed Kennedy.
A June poll shows Landrieu holds a slim lead over Kennedy, 47 to 44 percent.
According to Rasmussen Reports, Landrieu leads among female voters in polls but trails among men. The incumbent attracts 69 percent of Democrats and has a 22 point lead among unaffiliated voters. Kennedy, meanwhile, earns 77 percent of the Republican vote. "Sometimes elections touted as cliffhangers live up to their billing," a Times-Picayune columnist wrote in March. "Sometimes, they don't. One race that could go either way is the [Landrieu] reelection bid."
-- By Veronica Zaragovia, Online NewsHour
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