Governor John Bel Edwards will be sworn in today at 11:30 AM for his second term of office on the steps of the Capitol, weather allowing.
Advisor to the Governor Richard Carbo says attendees will get to hear from Edwards about his plans for the next four years, and enjoy some top-notch Louisiana talent.
“I think there will be a few surprises, I don’t want to touch on them right now, but we’ve got great choirs from Southern, Grambling, and Centenary that will be performing, so I think folks will be in for a treat,” says Carbo.
The Governor’s Ball is traditionally held the night of the inauguration, but it’s been canceled to allow state dignitaries to head down to New Orleans for the CFP National Championship.
Second term celebrations tend to be a bit smaller than they were for the first term, but Carbo still expects a good number of supporters of both Edwards and the new Legislative class to attend.
“There were a lot of people that were invested personally in making sure that John Bel Edwards won a second term and a lot of people around the state support him and want to be there for him, so there will be a big crowd,” says Carbo.
The House and Senate convene at 10 AM, before the ceremony.
The mood will be celebratory, but UL Lafayette Poli Sci Professor Pearson Cross says it won’t last long…
“He is going to have some problems working with the Legislature, the opposition is set up, he’s going to have a supermajority in the Senate, and a near supermajority in the House,” says Cross.
Cross says that’ll likely continue to tank his long-running campaign promise of a minimum wage hike. Instead, he’ll have to find some issues where there’s broad Legislative consensus.
“It will be early childhood education, maybe getting teachers a raise, other things like clarifying a tax cut,” says Cross.
