Five Democrats File to Slow GOP Favorite Jindal in Louisiana Governor’s Race

Five Democrats File to Slow GOP Favorite Jindal in Louisiana Governor’s Race
By Greg Giroux

Two-term Republican Rep. Bobby Jindal has been regarded as a solid front-runner in the “off-year” election for governor in his home state of Louisiana — especially since beleaguered Democratic Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco announced in March that she will not seek a second term, and since popular retired Democratic Sen. John B. Breaux took a pass on the race the following month.

Now, in the wake of Thursday’s candidate filing deadline in Louisiana, both Jindal and state Democratic officials know who will be trying to thwart the GOP congressman — or at least hold him below the majority he would need in the state’s unique all-candidate primary Oct. 20 to win the office outright and avoid a Nov. 17 runoff with the second-place finisher.

According to a compilation by the Louisiana Secretary of State’s office, 13 candidates filed to run for the governorship. Jindal — who lost to Blanco by 52 percent to 48 percent in the 2003 governor’s race but then easily won the House seat in the strongly Republican 1st District the next year — is the only Republican who filed.

There are five Democratic candidates, the best-known are Foster Campbell, a state public service commissioner, and Walter J. Boasso, a state senator who recently switched from the Republican Party. Boasso and businessman John Georges, who is running as an independent, originally planned to run for governor as Republicans, but ran into the fact that the state’s GOP establishment is solidly behind Jindal.

more...

http://www.cqpolitics.com/2007/09/five_democrats_file_to_slow_go.html