Violent attacks, big money and hopeful proposals define Baton Rouge’s mayoral race – The Advocate

Controversial attacks, hopeful messages and big money have abounded in the past 250 days of Baton Rouge’s mayoral election — even more so as Election Day nears.

Since the first contender announced his candidacy in February, Baton Rouge has had a real race, and one that looked like a three-header after qualifying in July.

And as incumbent Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome, Democrat Ted James and Republican Sid Edwards battle for the last bit of support needed to secure a spot in the December runoff, a final message for each has made this one of the most passionate mayors yet of Baton Rouge races by years.

Polls on Election Day open at 6am and close at 8pm on Tuesday. Voters can find their location at voterportal.sos.la.gov.

“A great foundation for the future”

Eight days before the final vote on Election Day, the top three candidates met near the bluffs of Southern University for a final mayoral forum.

Broom, James and Edwards’ closing arguments Monday night were representative of the obstacles each faced during the difficult campaign.

Broome used the stage at the university’s Stewart Hall Auditorium, where she was once an assistant professor, to remind the audience of the obstacles she faced when she first took office in 2017.

“We had a very tumultuous year in 2016,” Broome said.

Broome told those in attendance that she was the one who brought police and the community together after the police killing of Alton Sterling and the shooting that killed four law enforcement officers. Her office upgraded infrastructure after the deadly Baton Rouge flood in 2016, she said.

She leaned on MoveBR, which she described as Baton Rouge’s biggest infrastructure project ever, telling voters the city needs four more years of her administration to build on the groundwork she’s started.

“We’re going to build on our MoveBR program,” Broome said. “The work that comes out of this will serve as a great foundation for the future.”

A divided city

As he has since joining the race in late February, James has told voters that Baton Rouge is a divided city and he is the one who can unite it. That’s why he decided to enter the race and challenge a former ally of the mayor.

“I’m running for mayor-president because I’m saddened,” James said. “I’m concerned that too many young people, once they graduate, make the choice to leave Baton Rouge.”

At the university, a two-time graduate, James – who broke fundraising records – stuck to the same game plan he had during the race, targeting voters in areas where he felt Broome was falling short.

“We have over 10 law enforcement agencies. My plan is for these agencies to work more closely together to better coordinate on dealing with violent crime,” he said.

He argued that MoveBR, while successful, disproportionately prioritized affluent white communities in Baton Rouge.

James sold himself as the candidate with the financial savvy to fix the money mistakes of the current administration.

“I’m not a politician”

For Edwards, the final days of the race continue to be a mix of pitching himself to voters as well as pitching himself as the man who will tackle Baton Rouge’s crime problem, as the man who is already shaping the city’s youth at Istruma High School every day .

“I’m a football coach, well, I’m not a politician,” Edwards resumed Monday night.

The coach spoke to the crowd about the ways the city’s violence has affected him as a resident of the 70805 zip code and a leader of young men, adding that he’s “going to hire 100 new police officers” to protect the city.

While the race featured frequent sparring between Broome and James, Edwards stayed out of it, presenting himself as a positive candidate without the baggage.

Again, he pushed for community policing Monday night at the closing event, as well as his focus on eliminating the disease and giving Baton Rouge residents more options for mental health support.

Ads, polls and contest status

A little more than two weeks before Election Day, a poll released by FuturePAC, affiliated with the Baton Rouge Area Chamber, showed a relatively close race between the top three candidates in the race.

James topped the poll with 29%, up six points from his position in a survey conducted by the same pollster in August. The poll found that Broome was just behind her rival on 28%, while Edwards was within striking distance on 22%.

Four others — Republican Steve Myers, Republican Nathaniel Hearn, independent Ryan Carter and independent Champaign Roundtree — are also running for mayor. Republican Tammy Cook withdrew her candidacy but will also be on the ballot because she did not file in time to be removed.

The razor-thin margin between the top three may give some insight into the attack ads that seem to have increased since then.

Last week, Broome released an ad featuring a secret recording of James made in July by ME Cormier before she started working as the mayor’s campaign manager a few weeks later.

The ad described her opponent as a misogynist bought up by the far right, although James said his words were taken out of context and edited to portray him negatively. His campaign even threatened a defamation lawsuit. The campaign has yet to release the full audio.

During his campaign, James attacked the mayor in public forums about the mismanagement of city and parish funds and Baton Rouge’s crime problem. His own campaign’s recent ads have done the same.

“EBR is on track to surpass 100 homicides for the seventh time in Sharon Broome’s eight years as mayor. It had only happened once before her,” James said on a recent radio show.

Even Edwards has taken hits on the air in recent weeks.

A James campaign ad took aim at Edwards for not voting once in the past eight-plus years, missing 25 consecutive elections.

“Should a coach start a player who has missed 25 straight practices?” the ad posits.

Another recent ad paid for by the Louisiana Coalition for Government Accountability continues the same tune, attacking the GOP-backed candidate.

“He was MIA when our community needed him, but suddenly he’s ready to lead it?” the narrator reads in the 30-second radio ad.

A near-certain runoff

Widely divergent polls throughout the race point to a number of scenarios possible Tuesday night as the race heads toward a likely runoff on Dec. 7.

Campaign advisers and political observers say the possible outcomes depend on what each candidate can do.

If Broome is to finish in the top two, she will likely need to keep her supporter base under pressure.

For James, a runoff likely means alienating some Democratic voters from Broome while gaining some support from the center-right.

If Edwards wants to keep his campaign alive, he will likely have to sway some of the conservative voters in the parish who see James as the only realistic option to unseat Broome.

“For those of you who haven’t made up your mind yet, I’d like you to take a look at me,” Edwards said Monday. “I’ve been setting my record in North Baton Rouge for over 40 years above anyone else in the city. This is where my work was.’

For Broom and James, a moment near the end of the forum in Stewart Hall Auditorium, on a campus where all three candidates have roots, was emblematic of their campaign battles thus far. It could also offer a preview of what’s to come if the only Democrats in the race find themselves in a runoff.

The final question asked at the event came from a Scotlandville woman, asked why she hears politicians and officials talk about improving roads and infrastructure in North Baton Rouge only every four years, while little action follows.

The mayor responded by trying to show the woman that her administration has made more progress than some may realize, despite the conflicting claims, and will continue to do so.

“I have worked tirelessly for the city-parish for the past eight years. I’ve never been picky about anything in my entire life,” Broome told her. “When I go to work, when I have a mission and an assignment, I go to work … any misinformation that says otherwise is not true.”

Given the last word, James’ response was met with a standing ovation as he used it to address the frustration of North Baton Rouge residents who may feel that Broome has failed to deliver as well as inspire young voters in the campus room on South Monday night.

“Your vote is the most important thing you have, and when you give it up, you have to ask for something from the people you elect … because they got something from you,” James said. “And when you give it out and when you pick someone, you better make sure that they’ve followed through on what they told you.”