MELANCON'S Congressional Seat Gets a Democrat Hopeful

A LITTLE LOUISIANA POLITICS

It is going to be interesting to see who on both sides of the aisle will run for Democrat Congressman Congressional seat in Louisiana. The good Congressman is of course going out to challenge David Vitter for Senate. Of course the big reason he is challenging Vitter is it is likely after the Census and the redistricting wars this seat disappears.

The problem is who would want to run for a seat that is about to go up in flames. If you have campaign debt it might be very hard for you to raise money since well you are about to be a non factor in two years. However it looks like that money and funding will not be a problem from ther national folks for this cycle so perhaps there will be no debt.

On the GOP side I would love if Hunt Downer ran. Not only is he a good man but I think it is likely he can raise money pretty easily.

Roll Call has the story:
Attorney Ravi Sangisetty (D) formally threw his hat into the open 3rd district race this week, one week after his third-quarter Federal Election Commission report showed that he had $130,000 in cash on hand as of Sept. 30.

Sangisetty is the first Democrat to file for the seat that Rep. Charlie Melancon (D) is giving up to run for Senate. Sangisetty submitted his statement of candidacy with the FEC on Sept. 9 and within three weeks showed about $136,000 in total receipts, which included a $50,000 personal loan.

“Our urgent problems demand thoughtful, practical and fact-based solutions. Both in this race and in Washington, I will bring to the table a strong background in federal law and policy, and the passion and energy necessary to stand up for our region,” said Sangisetty, who works as a business attorney at the firm Duval, Funderburk, Sundbery, Lovell & Watkins in Houma.

On the Republican side, professor Kristian Magar has filed for the race and state Rep. Nickie Monica has declared his interest in the seat. But the field could get crowded on both sides on the aisle before the July filing deadline.

I know very little about these folks. I will try to do a profile on Republican Prof Kristian Magar

I actually thuight Mr Democrat DUDE had already filed but I guess not.

The Houma Paper has a article up on him here at ATTORNEY TO RUN FOR MELANCON'S SEAT ( I am currently having problems opening it up)

The Advocate has a story up from Oct 4th that has much more local flavor on the dynamics of the race.

WASHINGTON – Now that Democratic U.S. Rep. Charles “Charlie” Melancon is running for the U.S. Senate, the political scrum among possible candidates for his open U.S. House race has attracted national attention.

Melancon, who is challenging Republican U.S. Sen. David Vitter of Louisiana next year, has won three terms in a district in which voters supported Republican presidential candidate John McCain by 61 percent.

Melancon’s open seat is expected to attract up to a dozen candidates who will zero in on capturing the only Democratic seat in the state’s House congressional delegation. The race is shaping to be one of the most prominent in the nation.

“This is the only open Democratic seat in serious jeopardy,” said David Wasserman, House analyst for the Cook Political Report. “This is the Republicans’ best chance to pick up an open seat.”

That means national campaign dollars from both sides likely will flow to the race. The potential candidate most watched is state Department of Natural Resources Secretary Scott Angelle.
Angelle isn’t saying whether he intends to run but, if he does, the question will be which party he will represent.

Angelle was a Democratic Party officeholder in St. Martin Parish from 1987 to 2004, when then-Gov. Kathleen Blanco, a Democrat, tapped him to run DNR.
He kept the job when Republican Bobby Jindal took over in 2008. Angelle coordinated Jindal’s legislative push during the session earlier this year.

Both the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and Republican National Campaign Committee have him on their list of possible candidates.

Angelle isn’t commenting on a bid. He hails from the northeast quadrant of the congressional district away from the population centers: Thibodeaux-Houma, the suburbs south of Baton Rouge such as Gonzales, areas south of New Orleans from Norco to the west to Chalmette to the east.

His job with the state would give Angelle instant name recognition, Blanco said.
“There is a great deference to Scott Angelle,” Blanco said. “He’s a good candidate.”
But Angelle is far from the only person considering a run for the 3rd U.S. congressional district spot.

Among Democrats expected to be in the field are state Rep. Damon Baldone, D-Houma, and fellow state Rep. Fred Mills, D-St. Martinville, according to the Democratic committee. State Rep. Gary Smith, D-Norco, has also been mentioned.

The committee said that Louisiana Recovery Authority board member Walter Leger has also shown interest. Attorney Ravi Sangisetti has already filed to run.

On the Republican side, former Republican House Speaker Hunt Downer of Houma said he is seriously considering a bid. State Rep. Nickie Monica, R-LaPlace, was already talking to the national GOP committee about running against Melancon.

Jeff Landry, a former legislative aide in the state Senate, is on the national committee list as is former state Sen. Craig Romero of New Iberia, who lost to Melancon in 2006.

The jostling for the seat could last a long time. The Louisiana filing deadline is July 9, months after other Southern states, which require commitments in March or April, said Joanna Burgos, regional NRCC press secretary.

“I think that’s not bad because the district and candidates will unify over who is the best person,” Burgos said.

That the district sits next to that held by Republican U.S. Rep. Joseph Cao of New Orleans will also be good for the Republican candidate, Burgos said. Cao is considered one of the most vulnerable members of Congress because he serves a district that is two-thirds African-American and Democrat.

National Republican support also will be on the way in that race, Burgos said.
“It’s going to help to get a lot more resources,” Burgos said of the 3rd district race.
Blanco said that electing a Democrat could be critical to the state, since Melancon is the only one in the seven-member House delegation. Democrats control both chambers of Congress.
Though McCain took the district, Blanco won in 2003 with 54 percent of the vote. Last year, district voters helped elect Democratic U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu of Louisiana with 53 percent of the vote, showing that they are willing to cross over.

Blanco notes that Louisiana‘s congressional delegation is overwhelmingly Republican while the federal is overwhelmingly controlled Democrats.

“The state needs a Democrat,” Blanco said. “If you put all your eggs in one basket then you have a problem in Washington.”