Former Democratic Governor Edwin Edwards’ legendary race against Republican former KKK Grand Wizard David Duke captivated the nation in 1991.
Advocate reporter Tyler Bridges covered “The Race from Hell” extensively. He said Edwards, who managed to survive and even thrive through numerous scandals, leaned into allegations of corruption against him with an unofficial campaign slogan of “vote for the crook, it’s Important”.
“David Duke once told me Edwin Edwards was a crook, but at least he was an honest crook,” said Bridges.
You can watch the 1991 Edwards vs. Duke gubernatorial debate here.
Edwards ultimately won that race 61% to 39% in the runoff after incumbent Governor Buddy Roemer took third place in the primary.
Bridges said Edwards was certainly a politician of his time whose brand of humor and lifestyle likely would not fly in today’s more politically correct political environment.
“Certainly the womanizing, which he was able to laugh off and tell jokes about it, I’m not sure that would have worked today,” said Bridges who added Edwards’ reputation as a rascal made him hard for even his opponents to hate. “There are people out there who in one moment they will tell you what a terrible person Edwin Edwards is and in the next moment they are telling a funny story about him.”
Bridges argued despite Edwards’ broad popularity it’s hard to make the case that he substantially improved the state given Louisiana still ranks at the bottom of most national rankings, but he remains the most important figure in state political history since Huey Long.
Edwards was governor from 1972-1980, 1984-1988, and then 1992-1996. His last political campaign was in 2014 where he ran for the Baton Rouge-centric 6th District, ultimately losing to Republican Congressman Garret Graves.
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