With the U.S. House elections now suspended in light of the state’s congressional map being declared unconstitutional, that means all campaigns are now null and void. Once a new map is adopted, the process will start all over from square one, with candidates going through the qualifying process in the new districts. Political strategist Lionel Rainey notes that all this comes after the 32 candidates from both parties had already raised and spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on an election that now will not happen.
“These candidates have gone and worked for the better part of a year; raised money, run their campaigns. And now, those campaigns do not exist anymore” Rainey said.
Rainey says Louisiana has entered uncharted waters with this last-minute suspension of the primary election; and as such, there are many unanswered questions – particularly when it comes to how much money the candidates will be able to raise, should they choose to run in a newly-drawn district. He points out that the federal government puts a cap on how much an individual can give to a specific candidate.
“Can you go back to these people and say, ‘Hey, that race is no longer happening, now running again. The race is in November. Can you go back and raise more money?'” Rainey asked.
Rainey says if the Federal Elections Commission does not grant a waiver given the unique circumstances, that’s going to put the candidates who decide to continue their quest for U.S. House in a very tough spot.
“That’s going to put some candidates in a really bad position, and these campaigns are going to have to rely on independent extended expenditures, or Super PACS, which are not limited in the amount of money that they can raise,” Rainey explained.
Comments