Posted on 12/17/2010 6:58:00 PM PST by LdSentinal
The Louisiana House swung Republican Friday with state Rep. Noble Ellington’s defection from the Democratic Party.
The move has both political and historical significance.
“For the first time since Reconstruction, Republicans have a majority in the House of Representatives,” said House Speaker Jim Tucker, R-Terrytown.
“I’m very happy about that,” he said.
Like legislatures across the nation, Louisiana’s Legislature is increasingly becoming Republican.
Recent defections from the Democratic ranks in Louisiana include state Rep. Fred Mills, state Sen. John Alario, state Sen. John Smith, state Rep. Walker Hines and state Rep. Simone Champagne.
Ellington’s switch gave Republicans the additional member they needed to take control of the House.
There now are 53 Republicans, 48 Democrats and four House members without a party affiliation.
Democrats still dominate the state Senate with 20 members. The Republican have 18 senators and there is one vacancy.
Ellington said he switched because of a shift in his northeast Louisiana district. He lives in Winnsboro.
“My district has changed, I think, and seems to be more following the Republican philosophy,” he said.
Ellington also acknowledged he would like to be speaker of the House and that changing his party affiliation “doesn’t hurt” that goal.
Republican Party of Louisiana Chairman Roger Villere lauded the switch in a prepared statement.
“For more than 100 years the Louisiana House of Representatives has remained under Democrat control, but today that has all come to an end,” he said.
Louisiana Democratic Party spokesman Kevin Franck said Democrats will continue to fight what he characterized as Republican-lead efforts to cut higher education and health care funding.
“It’s a shame that a handful of politicians have succumbed to the temptation of putting personal ambition ahead of serving their constituents, but the Louisiana Democratic Party will not be deterred from our mission to stand up for the little guy and make sure government works for the people, not the powerful,” he said.
They are a few years behind the Tennessee GOP. The GOP took control of the state Senate about 6 years ago and the House 2 years ago.
About freakin time.
The South should’ve been solidly Republican decades ago.
The Democrats destroyed LA, enslaved their constituents & they left them to die during Katrina for the sake of their voter base.
This should come as no surprise.
Wow, the election is over and the GOP gained another House of the state legislature.
The special election for the former Dem State Senator ended today with NO Democrats running. There are 2 Republicans and 4 independents meaning The GOP will pick up another state senator, needing one more seat to flip.
Well, to the point, we “won” a technical majority in them 6 and 2 years ago, but we didn’t get operational control until we tossed out John Wilder in 2007 and we won’t have control of the House until we dump the Democrat puppet Traitor Kent Williams in January.
In Georgia, a state which remained solidly Democrat at all levels until 2002, Republican won this year every four year office, have 36 of 56 Senate seats (38 is 2/3s) and 114 of 180 House seats (120 is 2/3s). Democrats in this state are in total retreat as they are in most Southern states. And they deserve their fate.
Are they switching in order to have a say in the redistricting process or to save their political careers - or both?
We fell for this nonsense in 84, all you gain is spy’s in the camp.
Nobody got ‘left to die’ during Katrina.
We got weavil’s in the house.
We need a good fumigating/house cleaning.
Probably both. It’s also possible that they had philosphical problems with the DemocRAT Party but stayed because they thought that was the only way they could win and perhaps because they grew up DemocRATS.
Advocate is a very left-leaning newspaper (as most journalists in the U.S. are).
Obama “change” continues. People forgot what Rats were all about and he’s given America a wake up call. Hope the LSM won’t lull them back to sleep.
(Ellington also acknowledged he would like to be speaker of the House and that changing his party affiliation “doesn’t hurt” that goal.)
The GOP won a man of principle, apparently...
Isn’t The Advocate a homo rag? Seems I remember that it was.
So all those legendary crooked Louisiana politicians were Democrats? Imagine that!
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