Congressional hopefuls hit games

• By GERARD SHIELDS AND SARAH CHACKO
• Advocate Capitol News Bureau
• Published: Nov 2, 2008 - UPDATED: 12:00 a.m.

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Candidates often spend the Sunday before Election Day in churches, but Saturday’s campaigning for those running in two federal races included communing with a congregation of about 90,000.

Candidates in the U.S. Senate and 6th U.S. Congressional District race entered their final stretch of the campaign Saturday, trying to shake as many hands as possible.

All the candidates, except incumbent U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-New Orleans, campaigned among the tailgaters for the LSU-Tulane University football game, which was played Saturday night at the 92,400-seat Tiger Stadium.

State Treasurer John Kennedy, R-Madisonville, who is challenging Landrieu, was red-faced and sweating but kept a brisk pace as he bounced from nest to nest of LSU fans cooking jambalaya and watching football at tailgate parties across the LSU campus.

“I keep moving,” he said. “If I stop, I won’t get up again.”

But Kennedy brushed off comments that he looks haggard, saying “I’m used to this. I’m just getting warmed up.”

Scott Schneider, spokesman for Landrieu’s campaign, said the Democrat returned to Washington, D.C., on Friday and planned to come back to Louisiana to resume campaigning in Baton Rouge today. He said Landrieu went to Washington to take part in Halloween activities with her daughter Mary Shannon, 11.

“It has absolutely nothing to do with the status of the race,” Schneider said. “This is something a mother is doing with her daughter.”

The candidates in the race for the 6th U.S. Congressional District — state Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-Baton Rouge; state Rep. Michael Jackson, No Party-Baton Rouge; and incumbent U.S. Rep. Don Cazayoux, D-New Roads — split their time throughout the district as well as at the LSU game.

Though most people in the 6th District live in East Baton Rouge Parish, the district covers all of East Feliciana, Livingston, St. Helena, West Baton Rouge and West Feliciana parishes and parts of Ascension, Iberville and Pointe Coupee parishes.

Both U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives seats are on the ballot Tuesday, along with elections for the president nationally and locally for a bond issue to raise money for construction and public safety projects. The winners in the Nov. 4 election for federal offices will be the candidates with the most votes rather than the winner receiving a 50 percent plus one majority of the votes cast.

Before the football game, Cassidy knocked on doors through the neighborhood surrounding Jefferson Terrace Elementary School, which he attended as a child. He was met by many old classmates or their parents, who called him “Billy” and promised their support.

“I don’t know if it’s a waste of time or an important thing to do,” Cassidy said about his door-knocking efforts. “We just have to keep working hard.”