Yikes the final precincts are in. They made it close. Under 2k margin for Cao.
1. Jefferson's indictment
2. election delayed by Gustav, not on same day as prez election
3. New rules - closed primaries now
Two other things that might have been enough to put Cao over the top was that he isn't white, and that Obama's recent win might have made some blacks more receptive to voting for a non-black.
It's great to see Jefferson's world crumbling:
Also in the cross-hairs of federal prosecutors are Jefferson siblings Betty Jefferson, the Orleans Parish 4th District Assessor, and political consultant Mose Jefferson, who were indicted last year on charges that they conspired to loot more than $600,000 in taxpayer money from three charities.In a separate case, Mose Jefferson was indicted on charges that he bribed the former president of the Orleans Parish School Board.
Those trials are set for early next year.
Jefferson's defeat also marks the latest and most severe blow to the Progressive Democrats, the Central City-based political organization that he founded. Among Jefferson allies who have been forced from public office since news of the FBI probe into Jefferson's dealings broke are: Renee Gill Pratt, the congressman's former legislative aide who lost her seat on the City Council; close ally Eddie Jordan, who was forced to resign as Orleans Parish district attorney; and Jefferson's daughter, then-state Rep. Jalila Jefferson-Bullock, who lost a bid last year for the state Senate.