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"A comprehensive, collaborative elections resource."
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The Big Sleazy: Politics in New Orleans, Louisiana. [by Rich Lowry]
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Race
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| Contributor | Brandonius Maximus |
| Last Edited | Brandonius Maximus Dec 24, 2008 10:16am |
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| Category | Commentary |
| News Date | Friday, December 13, 1996 04:00:00 PM UTC0:0 |
| Description | Bob Tucker, dressed down in a "New Orleans" sweatshirt and blue jeans, looks every bit the satisfied civic booster. Plaques on his office wall from civic and business groups tout his service and accomplishments; in one picture he beams as he stands next to President Clinton. Tucker is indeed emblematic of success, Big Easy style: He's best friends with the mayor; his business looks to be benefiting handsomely from the connection; and he is plugged into a political machine that demonstrated its clout with a clean sweep on November 5, delivering everything from local judgeships to the scalp of Republican senatorial candidate Woody Jenkins.
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How exactly November 5 rolled out may be the focus of scrutiny for quite some time. Republican U.S. Senate candidate Woody Jenkins alleges a series of irregularities that tipped his contest to Democrat Mary Landrieu by 5,788 votes. His campaign has yet to produce hard evidence of fraud. What's clear is that on November 5 a political machine not noted for its scruples (see contracting practices above) pulled out all the stops to win in an environment flush with gambling money, in a state where corruption is endemic, in a blitzkrieg fashion that makes Ralph Reed look like an organizational amateur.
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"Down here," explains Tucker, "we can tell by about three o'clock whether we won or lost an election." By early afternoon on November 5 exit polls showed Mary Landrieu trailing Woody Jenkins by about 4 points. So, Miss Landrieu piled into the back of a red convertible with Morial for a final push through the New Orleans projects. "We hooked up a motorcade to go through those areas where we knew there to be pro-Landrieu vote," Tucker says. The parade would briefly stop, workers in surrounding vehicles would jump out to pound on doors in a six-to-seven-block area, then the motorcade would reassemble and move on to the next neighborhood. |
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