Various items

It looks like Mike Walker will be the next Mayor Pro Tem. Mike has done a good job of providing leadership to all of the new council members and they will reward him by making him the next Mayor Pro Tem of East Baton Rouge.

Bones Addison is the odd man out. Bones is spending more time in Florida and Chicago with the Obama transition team than he is in Baton Rouge. Bones told a friend of mine that with the election of Obama his business has increased ten times. Bones is in tight with the Obama team and Jessie Jackson. It appears that Bones has very little interest in the Metro Council. Last Thursday there was a retreat for the new Metro Council, Bones only showed up to take the official picture of the new council with the mayor and then he left. I have not heard anything official but makes me wonder if Bones is lining up for some appointed job with the Obama administration. My personal opinion is I would not put money on Bones completing his term of office.

This new Council has a very good working relationship and they are determined not to fight among themselves. It will be interesting to see how long this last.

Ronnie Edwards, Donna Collins-Lewis, C. Denise Marcelle, and Tara Wicker are natural allies and old Friends. I would expect that they will vote together most of the time. If you want something past in the Metro Council you better have the girls on your side.

The Parish of East Baton Rouge is getting geared up to be in the Obama Economic Stimulus line this February. I talked to someone in the Mayor's office and I was told that the mayor believes that President Elect Obama first actions as president will be to have an economic stimulus package that will include infra-structure improvement for cities. The Mayor wants to be in that line for money early and is now drafting a request. I was not told what kind of infra-structure improvements the Mayor will ask for, but I hope that he is asking for money for Baton Rouge's aging sewer plants and bridges.

The Baton Rouge Fab Five!

Edwards and Donna Collins-Lewis

First it was Hilary, then it was Sarah Palin and now it is the Baton Rouge Fab Five!

To me the BIG, BIG story of this local election is the five women who won seats on the Baton Rouge Metro Council. Never in the history of Baton Rouge have there been five women serving on the Metro Council at one time.

All of these women are forward thinking and have been involved in the city for many years. Over the years these women have worked on projects together, so that they already have a close working relationship.

Tara Wicker was the neighborhoods coordinator under Mayor Bobby Simpson. She was the bright spot of the Simpson administration. While working for the Simpson administration she work with many of these women and count some of then as personal friends.

Alison Cascio is a professional city planner who had been David Boneno assistant, she is very knowledgeable of the problems in our city and will be a great asset to the Metro Council.

Ronnie Edwards is no stranger to politics. She is a long time ally of State Senator Sharon Weston Broome and the founding executive director of Urban Restoration Enhancement Corporation. She has very good political instincts. She knows how to bring people together and build coalitions.

Donna Collins-Lewis has worked with Yvonne Dorsey and she is an old friend of Ronnie Edwards. Lewis worked for the East Baton Rouge Clerk of Court working with Yvonne Dorsey and even Mike Walker.

C. Denise Marcelle worked with an attorney as a legal assistant and has been involved with churches in her district. She has also worked on projects with both Ronnie Edwards and Donna Collins-Lewis.

With these sharp, intelligent women on the Metro Council I am expecting great things from the Council.

All I have to say to the men on the Council you better either lead, follow, are get the hell out of the way!

My crystal ball is hazy:

My crystal ball is hazy:

I was very wrong about Kennedy! I guess a bad candidate is a bad candidate and coat tails can’t help a bad candidate.

Mayor's Tax proposal
Fails because nothing in it for Central and Zachary.

This measure failed by less than two percent of the vote. If the mayor would have put some goodies in for Central and Zachary the story could have been different.

Judge, Juvenile Court, Elec. Sect. 1A
Gerald T. "Jerry" Arbour, R Overwhelming a Republican district. The "R" behind Arbour name wins the race.

I blew that call!

Metro District 2
Handy wins. Too much support from the Mayor.

And this one! The mayor will have his hands full with Bones.

Metro District 3
Chandler Loupe wins big!

Loupe won, but it was no landslide.

Metro District 5
Edwards wins big 70%+. Put a fork in this race it is over, Edwards is just too organized.

Edwards won by 68%. Close but no cigar.

Metro District 6
Toss up. Depends on turn out. Don't count Tassin out.

Wasn’t even close. Donna Collins-Lewis won by a landslide.

Metro District 7
Sharper has the edge. Sorry about that folks.

I miss this one bad. I must salute the voters for voting a bad guy out.

Metro District 10
This is a hard one to call to good candidates both well organized. I have to go with my heart and go with Tara Wicker.

Boy this was a close race. Wicker won by 6 votes.

Metro District 11
Cascio by a landslide.

Got this one right!

Metro District 12
Benham in a close one. Status-quo is hard to beat.

Smokie won by 36 votes. This race really surprised me.

My Predictions

This is my predictions for next Tuesday Baton Rouge elections.
I hope that my crystal ball is working.

Mayor's Tax proposal
Fails because nothing in it for Central and Zachary.

Judge, Juvenile Court, Elec. Sect. 1A
Gerald T. "Jerry" Arbour, R Overwhelming a Republican district. The "R" behind Arbour name wins the race.

Metro District 2
Handy wins. Too much support from the Mayor.

Metro District 3
Chandler Loupe wins big!

Metro District 5
Edwards wins big 70%+. Put a fork in this race it is over, Edwards is just too organized.

Metro District 6
Toss up. Depends on turn out. Don't count Tassin out.

Metro District 7
Sharper has the edge. Sorry about that folks.

Metro District 10
This is a hard one to call to good candidates both well organized. I have to go with my heart and go with Tara Wicker.

Metro District 11
Cascio by a landslide.

Metro District 12
Benham in a close one. Status-quo is hard to beat.

Edwards/Broone?

The decision by many veteran East Baton Rouge Metro Council members not to run for re-election has opened the Metro Council to a new generation of leadership.

One of these impressive new leaders is Ronnie Edwards who is running in district 5, for Charles Kelly current seat.

District five is a north Baton Rouge district that is primarily African-American.

Even though this is the first time that Edwards has run for political office, she is no stranger to Baton Rouge politics. She is a closely associated with State Senator Sharon Weston Broome and has helped managed all of Broome’s campaigns. Edwards is the founding executive director for Broome’s non-profit Urban Restoration Enhancement Corp. that has been helping people to obtain homes for the last fifteen years.

In District 5, there are five people running for office. Edwards is the only candidate that is funded. She has raised over $15,000 in contributions and on her latest financial report, she reported that she had over $8,000 of cash on hand. Her opponents have only raised a small fraction of that amount and according to financial reports they have no cash on hand for the final phase of the campaign.

Edwards has not only raised that amount of money she knows how to spend her money effectively to get her elected. She knows how to identify her vote and get her vote out on Election Day.

Even though there are five people running for that office because of money and hard smart work it is very possible that she will win in the first primary.

If Edwards can win on October 4^th this opens up Edwards and Senator Broome to get involved in other Metro Council races and help those candidates that are friendly to Edwards/Broome.

Ronnie Edwards has good political instincts and is very intelligent but more than that, she knows how to bring people together of all races. She sees can see the bigger picture while representing her District very effectively.

One of the first actions of the new council will be voting for a Mayor Pro-Tem. Mike Walker has expressed an interest in this job and I would except that Bones Addison if he wins would be interest in the job also. Both men are veterans to the Metro Council and both men carry baggage to the Metro Council.

Typically, the election for Mayor Pro-Tem falls between race lines of white conservative republicans verses black democrats. Mike Walker and Bones Addison are both leaders for their respective camps. Mike Walker with a relatively easy race has been helping in other Metro Council candidate’s races and will be more active in the general election. However, the new Metro Council in January will want to have their own leadership and will want to cut from the past that could leave both Walker and Addison out. This could set up for a compromise candidate and Ronnie Edwards could be the one who unites whites and blacks, republicans and democrats.

But, the story behind the store of Ronnie Edwards is that State Senator Broone is building her political machine to run for a bigger office. Maybe Mayor in four years?