St. Tammany is headed for a year of reckoning.
The northshore parish has seen its decades-long upward trajectory transition to an , gummed up by an inefficient government structure and a skeptical voter base wearied by years of scandals and financing fights among officials.
But over the next year plus, three key elections — in November, December and then again next November — will go a long way to determining whether that inertia can be overcome or whether it is now the long-term condition.
First, in November, is a . This one is sure to generate plenty of heat and, more importantly, draw rivers of cash. There are four candidates; longtime Slidell police officer Daniel Seuzeneau and former h State Police Superintendent Robert Hodges are the front-runners.
The candidates are running to break an ignominious streak. St. Tammany’s last two sheriffs ended up on the other side of the criminal justice system: Jack Strain was and Randy Smith to attacking a man in a Madisonville restaurant.
In keeping with a long St. Slammany tradition, this year’s campaigns are touting their tough-on-crime bona fides. But even more important will be rebuilding trust with an electorate that has grown accustomed to seeing sheriffs forced to don the cuffs they once carried.
As spicy as that race is likely to be, it is less important than the race that will come roughly one month later.
Then, parish voters will get a chance to (again) vote on a tax to support the parish’s criminal justice system, especially the district attorney and parish judges. This is the seventh (you heard that right) time a law enforcement tax like this has been on the ballot. The other six were swatted back decisively.
This tax bears the scars of the previous attempts: It has only a five-year term and is only a quarter-cent sales tax, down from the originally conceived 10-year, one-third cent sales tax. That there was a retreat even before the campaign started shows just how nervous parish leaders are about asking voters for anything.
The funding problem is real. It’s been the source of repeated tensions between District Attorney Collin Sims and Parish President Mike Cooper. Sims has warned that without the tax, he will have no choice but to cut prosecutor salaries and benefits. Cooper has argued that the parish’s general fund is also strapped.
Both have a point; some of the issues stem from a in the way that the h Constitution lays out local governments and their funding sources. (see East Baton Rouge District Attorney against parish government in Baton Rouge).
Let’s assume for the moment that voters do the same thing they’ve done every other time and reject this attempt.
That will set up the November 2027 elections, in which parish president and all 14 council members will be on the ballot, fighting to lead a parish government that will be flailing financially.
So far, at least, that hasn’t stopped candidates from showing interest or others from speculating about who might jump into a race for parish president. A longtime Cooper aide, Gina Hayes, has already declared her intention to run. Former state Treasurer John Schroder is believed to be considering it. Former Slidell mayor and parish presidential candidate Greg Cromer is viewed as likely to run. Parish Council member Kathy Seiden, who mounted a quixotic and short-lived campaign for the U.S. Senate, has been mentioned as a potential candidate. Others could alter the race dynamics even further.
Given the likely financial picture, it’s strange that anyone would want the job. Whoever wins will need the political discipline to stand up against a strong district attorney in Sims, who was reelected this year without opposition and is adept at wielding his political heft.
They will also need the political skill to present real solutions (read: taxes) to parish residents in a way that makes those solutions palatable. It’s a daunting challenge.
Of course, the most unpredictable factor in all this is voters. They’re the ones who will make the decisions and who will face the eventual consequences. So while the candidates must face the voters, it’s voters who will face the reckoning.
Editor’s note: This column has been updated to reflect that Gina Hayes has declared her candidacy for parish president.