It’s hard to believe, but in four days the Louisiana Senate race will be over. If early voting is
Rep. Bill Cassidy, the doctor-turned-GOP-candidate who is running against Landrieu, is well on his way to securing the ninth Senate seat for Republicans in what has already been an embarrassing midterm election for Democrats.
A poll from last month showed Landrieu in deep, deep trouble. Her campaign likely shielded their eyes when reading the initial early voting reports. While Republican early voting increased 4 percent from a month ago, on the Democratic side, it decreased by 18 percent. The New Orleans Times-Picayune explains why these trends are significant:
The jump in early Republican voters is noteworthy, given that early voting overall dropped by 10 percent from the November primary to the December runoff. The number of registered Democrats who voted early fell even further -- about an 18 percent decrease -- from the primary to the runoff, according to information provided by the Secretary of State's office.
To make matters worse for Landrieu, one of the demographics she had been counting on, African Americans, is, so far, especially absent in this race. Voting by early ballot among African Americans has decreased by 24 percent since November 4.
So, why aren’t Louisiana Democrats heading to the polls? Landrieu managed to win two other runoff elections, but this time it appears she’s run out of luck and steam. In a state grossly displeased with the president's health care law, it’s certainly not helping the senator’s cause that her team is still bragging about her near perfect voting record with Obama. After 18 years, Landrieu has now failed to excite her base, and Louisianans seem ready for a change.
Check out my coverage from New Orleans last week, where Cassidy was joined by Gov. Bobby Jindal (R-LA) and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) at an exuberant rally in Kenner, LA.