[StBernard] Queue Begins to Form for Melancon's Open Seat

[Westley Annis]

Queue Begins to Form for Melancon's Open Seat
Sept. 8, 2009 
By John McArdle
Roll Call Staff 


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Few things create more interest in a potential candidate than when
Republicans and Democratic operatives drop the same name when discussing
recruitment prospects. 
It happened last cycle in Alabama's southeast 2nd district before now-Rep.
Bobby Bright eventually decided to run as a Democrat, and it's happening
again in Louisiana's 3rd district, where both parties are bracing for
another open-seat showdown. 

The district soared to the top of GOP target lists late last month after
three-term Rep. Charlie Melancon (D) formally announced his plans to run for
the Senate in 2010. 

Now the man at the heart of much recruitment speculation is Scott Angelle, a
Democrat who was named by Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal in late 2007 to serve
as Louisiana's secretary of the Department of Natural Resources. It's his
second stint at that post - he also served under former Democratic Gov.
Kathleen Blanco. 

Beyond his natural resource management credentials, Angelle has political
chops. 

The former St. Martin Parish president was tapped earlier this year by
Jindal to serve as his legislative liaison. 

"People think of him as governor material in the future," said John
Maginnis, who pens a weekly newsletter on Louisiana politics. 

And while Maginnis said Angelle has earned the support of many Republicans
through his work for Jindal, the Bayou State rising star certainly has a
future in either party. 

"He could either be the new [former Democratic Sen.] John Breaux or the new
Republican star," he said. 

Angelle could not be reached for comment last week, but in the few public
statements he's made on the subject he's been noncommittal about whether to
run for the 3rd district seat and which party he would run with. 

Republicans in Washington, D.C., and south Louisiana have been crowing about
their chances in the conservative district that Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.)
won with 61 percent of the vote in the 2008 presidential election. Democrats
prefer to point to Sen. Mary Landrieu's (D-La.) nearly 10-point margin of
victory in the 3rd district last year. 

The last time the 3rd district seat was open, Melancon beat the son of the
district's outgoing Congressman in the closest election of the 2004 cycle.
In the open primary that year, Melancon took just 24 percent of the vote to
Billy Tauzin III's (R) 32 percent but ended up winning the runoff by 569
votes. 

Regardless of which party he decided to run in, Angelle would have
geographic and electoral issues to consider if he wants to replace Melancon.


While Angelle's work with the Department of Natural Resources is known
throughout the coastal district which has been battered by hurricanes in
recent years, his base of support lies in the 3rd's northwest corner in St.
Martin Parish. 

Candidates from a more centralized location would probably have an easier
time introducing themselves across the 12,700-square-mile district that lies
in the shadow of three of the state's largest media markets. 

Meanwhile, there are candidates being mentioned for the race who would start
with a more centralized base. Democratic state Rep. Damon Baldone, who is
term-limited out of his House seat at the end of his current term,
represents parts of Terrebonne and Lafourche parishes. 

On the Republican side, Craig Webre, a five-term sheriff who told Maginnis
he is considering the race, hails from Lafourche Parish. 

Another issue Angelle would have to consider is Louisiana's recently
revamped primary system. 

During the 2008 cycle, Louisiana held its first closed primaries in three
decades. Before then, the November election served as an all-party primary
day and runoffs took place in December. 

Since Melancon went unopposed in 2008, the system had little impact on the
3rd district last year, but that will not be the case in 2010. 

With the credentials he's built in both parties, Angelle might have been the
one candidate who would have fared better under the old system. 

But party insiders say Angelle would still be a major player in either
primary race. 

Democratic state Rep. Fred Mills - a potential candidate who got a
recruiting call from Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman
Chris Van Hollen (Md.) last week - said his "dear friend" Angelle would
certainly have the ability to clear the field. 

Mills, who said he plans to make a final decision on the race sometime in
the next month, said that if Angelle decided to run, "I wouldn't even
consider it," even if Angelle ran as a Republican. 

Meanwhile, one Louisiana Republican source said last week that despite
Angelle's current political affiliation, there are ways to ensure he
wouldn't have too much trouble in a GOP primary. 

"He's working for Bobby right now, and if Bobby says he's the Republican
candidate for the job then Republican voters and the state party will back
him," the source said. 

Of course whether Jindal would expend his political capital in a 3rd
district primary is another matter. 

While no Republicans - or Democrats - have officially announced for the
open-seat race yet, state Rep. Nickie Monica (R) appears to be all but in. 

Monica was talking up GOP chances for taking back the conservative district
even before it became clear that Melancon was running for the Senate and he
met with the National Republican Congressional Committee about challenging
the Congressman. 

The other factor that any potential 3rd district candidate will have to
consider before jumping into the race is the fact that he may be applying
for a short-term gig. 

Louisiana is widely expected to lose a seat in the Congressional
reapportionment process following next year's census and, the 3rd district
could well be on the chopping block. 

The 3rd district's Congressman will be low on the seniority scale come 2011,
and one conservative group in the state has already released an early
redistricting map that proposes eliminating the 3rd district by combining it
with the majority-black 2nd district. 

"It's something that's definitely in my mind and it's in the mind of
supporters out there," said Democratic state Rep. Gary Smith, who is also
contemplating a bid and is in his final term in the state House. "That's one
of the reasons we need a good strong person to take that seat, so that we
can make sure we have representation here. ... We want to fight to make sure
there is a seat here to still run in." 

Smith said he's hopeful Democrats can avoid a contentious primary as they
look ahead to 2010. 

"Hopefully as a Democratic body we can sit down and promote one strong
candidate," he said. 

Two other Democrats who have been mentioned for the race are attorney Ravi
Sangisetty and Ascension Parish Sheriff Jeff Wiley. 

A few other Republican names being floated for the 3rd district race are
former state Speaker Hunt Downer, who is the assistant adjutant general of
the Louisiana National Guard, Plaquemines Parish President Billy Nungesser
Jr., whose father is the former chairman of the Louisiana Republican Party,
and 2007 state Senate candidate Jeff Landry.