I haven’t followed this race very closely at all, so I have no additional information to provide you.
Republican businessman Vance McAllister has won a special House election in Louisiana, an upset victory for a political newcomer.
McAllister defeated Louisiana state Sen. Neil Riser (R) by 60 percent to 40 percent with all precincts reporting. Riser had the endorsement of House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R) as well as members of Louisiana’s congressional delegation.
McAllister had trailed Riser in the first round of voting but won the runoff by tacking to the center, saying he supported parts of ObamaCare. The move seemed risky in the heavily conservative district, but the all-party election system in Louisiana means Democrats and independents voted in the election of the two Republicans.
Two seemingly contradictory things appear to have happened here. On the one hand, the Establishment choice lost, but, on the other hand, the insurgent candidate won by defending parts of ObamaCare. I don’t know if the more moderate candidate won or if he was just the more savvy campaigner.
This result is part of the design of this election structure, which Louisiana shares with California and Washington state. Primaries that can result in a general election between two members of the same party are supposed to advantage the more moderate candidate. In this case, the insurgent tacked to the middle to attract Democrats who had no candidate to vote for. That doesn’t necessarily mean that he is actually the more reasonable of the two candidates.
