Louisiana Treasurer's Senate Bid Decided Saturday

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BRADENTON, Fla. - Voters in Louisiana go to the polls Saturday to choose the remaining U.S. Senator in this year's election cycle.

The Parishwide School District No.3 of West Baton Rouge Parish also will be asking voters to approve financing for school construction projects.

Polls will be open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

In the U.S. Senate race longtime State Treasurer John Kennedy, a Republican, will face Democrat Foster Campbell, a public service commissioner and cattle farmer.

Both men emerged with the top votes from a field of 24 candidates in the Nov. 8 election.

They are vying to replace David Vitter, who did not seek reelection and lost a bid for governor last year.

Kennedy, 65, is a lawyer and chairman of the State Bond Commission who has often been outspoken about the state budget and the use of financing techniques to ease the state's budget crunch.

Kennedy, who is from Madisonville, was first elected treasurer in 2000 and was reelected to his fifth term in October 2015.

"Louisiana needs a U.S. Senator who will give our businesses the opportunities they need to thrive, hire more people and grow our economy, and that's exactly the kind of Senator I will be," Kennedy said on his campaign website.

Campbell, 69, of Elm Grove served as a state senator for 27 years before being elected to the Public Service Commission in 2002.

"I will take on the powerful special interests and make a difference for the people who just want jobs, opportunity, affordable healthcare and good schools," Campbell said.

Kennedy has a 14-point lead over Campbell going into Saturday's election, according to a poll from Baton Rouge-based Southern Media and Opinion Research.

If Kennedy wins, First Assistant State Treasurer Ron Henson would take Kennedy’s place until a special election could be called by Gov. John Bel Edwards, said Meg Casper, spokeswoman for the Secretary of State.

An election for a new treasurer likely would be held in the fall of 2017, she said.

Across the state, numerous local elections and referendums will be on ballots.

In West Baton Rouge Parish, School District No. 3 is asking voters to raise property taxes in order to issue $90 million of general obligation bonds.

The 20-year bonds would be repaid with a property tax millage rate that is expected to range between 8 mills and 15 mills.

Bond proceeds would be used to buy land, furnish new schools, and make improvements at other facilities to address overcrowding and support technology infrastructure, art and music programs.

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