Fmr. La Sen. Elbert Guillory launches campaign for Lt. Gov.

ALEXANDRIA, La. (KALB) - On Thursday, Feb. 9, Former State Senator Elbert Guillory (R) launched his campaign for Louisiana Lieutenant Governor.

Guillory, who lives in Opelousas, decided to launch his campaign in Central Louisiana to make a point, that no part of Louisiana will be overlooked if he is elected to office. He said he can sell Louisiana on a regional level and believes tourism in the state needs to be decoupled from New Orleans.

Former State Senator Elbert Guillory is running for Lt. Governor on the idea of de-coupling tourism from New Orleans and selling Louisiana on a regional level.

“There will be no part of Louisiana pushed aside or forgotten.”
Elbert Guillory, candidate for Lt. Gov.

Specifically, Guillory wants to prioritize a “T”-shaped railway line connecting New Orleans to Lake Charles and up into Alexandria, Shreveport and Monroe.

Guillory emphasized he wants to use his legislative experience to address problems in Louisiana, like crime and educational challenges, because those issues have a direct impact on the state’s tourism industry.

”Those are the problems that are making Louisiana a difficult place. Those are the problems that are dragging Louisiana down,” said Guillory. “And so, because I am the head of tourism, doesn’t mean that I can not get involved in all of the rest of that. I can not let all of that talent, that experience that I’ve developed over the years, go to waste.”

Guillory previously ran for Lt. Gov. in 2015 against current Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser (R), who is also seeking reelection. Guillory only received 7.9% of the vote, while Nungesser went on to defeat Kip Holden (D) in a runoff.

Guillory has a long history in Louisiana politics. He served in the State Senate from 2009-2014. He switched his political party from Democrat to Republican in 2013. He was mentioned as a possible candidate to run for the U.S. 5th Congressional District and U.S. Senate in 2014 but did not, instead seeking the Lt. Gov. seat in 2015. After losing that election, he ran for the U.S. 4th Congressional District in 2016, which current Congressman Mike Johnson won.

The only other candidate to have officially announced a bid for Lt. Gov. is incumbent Nungesser. State House Speaker Clay Schexnayder (R-District 81) has said he is considering a run for the office.

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