School boards, millages on ballot

Published 12:00 am Wednesday, September 29, 2010

By David Vitrano

L’Observateur

LAPLACE – The second of three rounds of fall elections will take place Saturday as River Parishes residents head to the polls to vote on matters ranging from statewide positions to local school board members and millage renewals.

Residents of St. John the Baptist, St. James and St. Charles parishes will all be casting ballots for a new lieutenant governor, a position vacated by new New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu. Voters will also be casting ballots in the race for the district 3 seat on the Public Service Commission. In that race, incumbent Lambert C. Boissiere III of New Orleans is facing challenger John F. Schwegmann of Metairie. Also on the ballot across the state will be a pair of constitutional amendments. The first deals with resetting the dates on which the Legislature convenes for its regular session. The second deals with the employment classification for employees of the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness.

Voters in St. James and those on the east bank of St. John will also be selecting a judge to sit on the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. Judge Jude Gravois, who replaced St. John District Attorney Tom Daley after a special election last year, is facing LaPlace attorney Daniel Becnel Jr. Lastly, republican voters in St. James, St. John and portions of St. Charles will be voting in the runoff for the third congressional district seat in which Jeff Landry of New Iberia and Hunt Downer of Houma will square off.

In St. John the Baptist Parish, voters will select some new school board members as four of the current school board members face opposition. Additionally, two propositions regarding millage renewals that mostly fund educator salaries in the parish will appear on Saturday’s ballot.

St. James Parish voters will also be casting ballots in a few school board elections. Three of that parish’s school board members face opposition this year. Additionally, residents of Lutcher will be casting ballots in a mayoral race that pits Rowdy Kennard Scott against Theresa “Tee” Williams.

In St. Charles Parish, only one school board member is facing opposition, so only voters in district 1 will be casting ballots for school board members. Voters throughout the parish, however, will be deciding on three millage renewals. The first supports the public library system, the second supports the maintenance and operation of public buildings and the parish’s 911 emergency system and the last is for providing and maintaining lighting along the parish’s roadways.

A full breakdown of what will appear on the ballots in all three parishes follows:

ALL PARISHES

Lieutenant Governor

• James Crowley, Democrat, Shreveport

• Jay Dardenne, Republican, Baton Rouge

• Kevin Davis, Republican, Abita Springs

• Caroline Fayard, Democrat, New Orleans

• Butch Gautreaux, Democrat, Morgan City

• Sammy Kershaw, Republican, Lafayette

• Melanie McKnight, Republican, Baton Rouge

• Roger Villere, Republican, Metairie

Public Service Commission, District 3

• Lambert Boissiere III, Democrat, New Orleans

• John Schwegmann, Democrat, Metairie

Constitutional Amendments

• No. 1: To move the convening of the legislature in annual regular session in even-numbered years to the second Monday in March and in odd-numbered years to the second Monday in April and to change the effective date of legislation enacted at such sessions to Aug. 1.

• No. 2: To provide that the director, deputy director and all employees of the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness shall be in the unclassified service of the state civil service.

ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST PARISH

Third Congressional District, Republican Runoff

• Hunt Downer, Houma

• Jeff Landry, New Iberia

Judge, Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, Second District, Division A (east bank only)

• Daniel Becnel Jr., Democrat, LaPlace

• Jude Gravois, Democrat, Vacherie

School Board, District 2

• Albert Burl III, Democrat, Garyville

• Elexia Henderson, Democrat, Mt. Airy

• Yevette Scioneaux, Democrat, Garyville

School Board, District 4

• Patrick Sanders, Democrat, Reserve

• Ferdinand Wallac Jr., Democrat, Reserve

School Board, District 5

• Sherry DeFrancesch, Unaffiliated, LaPlace

• Wilbert Ocmond Jr., Democrat, LaPlace

School Board, District 8

• Beverly Harris, Democrat, LaPlace

• Chris Ory, Unaffiliated, LaPlace

• Russ Wise, Unaffiliated, LaPlace

School Board, District 10

• Rodney Nicholas

• John Olynick

• Matthew Ory

Propositions

• Ten-year, 3.47 mills property tax renewal for providing additional funds for salaries and fringe benefits for all employees (except privately contracted services) of the school system but not to supplant current revenues being expended for all employee salaries and benefits.

• Ten-year, 10.56 mills property tax renewal for providing annual improvement of salaries (including employee health care) of teachers and all other employees of the district.

ST. JAMES PARISH

Third Congressional District, Republican runoff

• Hunt Downer, Republican, Houma

• Jeff Landry, Republican, New Iberia

Judge, Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, Second District, Division A

• Daniel Becnel Jr., Democrat, LaPlace

• Jude Gravois, Democrat, Vacherie

School Board, District 3

• Jared Amato, Other, Paulina

• Carol Lambert, Democrat, Paulina

School Board, District 5

• Lawrence Ambrose Jr., Democrat, St. James

• Yvette Malancon, Democrat, St. James

• Patricia Schexnayder, Democrat, St. James

Mayor of Lutcher (Lutcher only)

• Rowdy Scott, Unaffiliated, Lutcher

• Theresa Williams, Democrat, Lutcher

ST. CHARLES PARISH

Third Congressional District, Republican runoff (portions of parish only)

• Hunt Downer, Republican, Houma

• Jeff Landry, Republican, New Iberia

School Board, District 1

• Ellis Alexander Sr., Unaffiliated, Hahnville

• Milton Allemand Jr., Unaffiliated, Hahnville

Propositions

• Ten-year, 4.5 mills property tax for maintaining, operating, constructing, improving and supporting public libraries of said parish.

• Ten-year, 1 mill property tax for improving, maintaining and/or operating public buildings of the parish and acquiring, constructing, improving, maintaining and/or operating 911 emergency telephone system (including the payment of necessary dispatch personnel).

• Ten-year, 1.75 mills property tax for providing and maintaining electric lights on the streets, roads, highways, alleys and public places of said parish.