Badon wins local Democrat and GOP endorsements

6th February 2012   ·   0 Comments

By Christopher Tidmore
Contributing Writer

On the surface, the odds would be against an African-American candidate prevailing on forcing a runoff in the March 24, 2012, special election for Council At-Large. With a generally higher Caucasian turnout on bi-election, post-Katrina at least, matched with a likely surge in GOP voters thanks to the Republican Presidential preference primary on the same ballot, it would seem an uphill battle for even a well-known Black candidate in the race to succeed Arnie Fielkow.

That is, unless the candidate is named Austin Badon.

The New Orleans East state representative has predicated his chances of victory on his unique crossover appeal. In order to beat former State Sen. and Council­woman Cynthia Willard Lewis into a runoff—and assure himself of a chance in defeating the frontrunner, current Council­woman Stacy Head—Badon must win a majority of the African-American vote, presenting himself as the only viable candidate to keep the traditionally “Black” At-Large seat. At the same time, he must also win a quarter of the white vote, both in the primary and runoff, to offset the March 24 GOP surge and the appeal that a conservative Democrat like Head has with her fellow Caucasians in Orleans.

For virtually any other African-American legislator, this would be an impossible task. However, thanks to the unique political positions he has taken over the years, Badon may have a chance to pull off the impossible. In just under a week, the state representative won the endorsements of both the Orleans Parish Democratic Executive Party (the official party organ in the city) and the Greater New Orleans Republicans (the metro’s Young Republican Group).

As the sponsor of the original Louisiana school voucher legislation, Badon has earned a place as a favorite of GOP conservatives, receiving national attention for breaking with the teacher’s union powers within the Democratic Party on the issue. The State Rep. also runs for the City Council at a time when he and his State House colleagues are considering a bill to further expand that state-funded scholarship program to over 380,000 public school students across Louisiana. Put another way, every Orleans Parish public school student who’s parents make under 250 percent of the poverty level, or $46,325 for a family of three, would qualify for a voucher to attend a private or parochial school.

While the a supermajority of the Legislative Black Caucus as well as most of the leadership of his party have castigated Badon for this stand, polls put publicly funded scholarships with two-thirds support amongst the African-American electorate. In other words, Badon has the chance to please GOP core voters without alienating his own constituency.

Partially, this is because the state representative explains vouchers in terms of social justice equity, “I believe that parents should have the right to choose what school their child attends and fully support giving disadvantaged children the same educational opportunities children from well-to-do families receive. One thing I learned as a New Orleans legislator serving as Chair of the House Education Committee is that change isn’t easy, it isn’t pretty, but it’s usually for the better. Surveys show that parents increasingly believe our schools are better than they were; we’re still not where we need to be, but we’re on the right path.”

As for the charterized Orleans System, Badon explained, “Even though the City Council is limited in what it can do with respect to our schools, one thing I’d do as a councilmember is increase coordination between the state, RSD, OPSB and the city. Revisions to the School Facilities Master Plan were recently finalized and we need to be sure the CZO needs to take these new facilities into account and allow these schools to be a catalyst in neighborhood redevelopment. The RSD recently announced career pathways will be integrated into some schools’ curricula; the city should look for ways to dovetail these efforts with the Office of Workforce Develop­ment. Information sharing and cooperation are also critical to addressing truancy, reducing recidivism rates among juveniles, and developing a robust mentoring program for at risk youth.”

Badon’s cross-partisan appeal is also seen in his fight with Mayor Mitch Landrieu over inviting the National Guard into Orleans Parish to augment the NOPD. Popular with the City’s Republican electorate, it is also an issue with appeal to the average Black voter worried about a surging murder rate. As Badon explained to The Louisiana Weekly, “The Mayor argues that bringing in the Louisiana National Guard Military Police to augment our overburdened police force is not proven to reduce murder. But the data I’ve seen shows a very clear correlation. According to Superintendent Serpas, the NOPD has lost over 200 officers since May 2010, leaving the police force with about 1,320 officers right now. That’s a 13 percent decrease. From 2010 to 2011, the murder rate increased 14 percent. That looks like a pretty clear correlation to me.”

“Our city is in a time of crisis.,” Badon continued, “Our police force is stretched thin. Our citizens are living in fear. We need bold and swift action to break the cycle of violence. Bringing in the National Guard is not a long-term solution, I’m the first to admit that. Mayor Landrieu and Supt. Serpas have announced a number of promising initiatives to address crime in the long-term: data-driven deployment and community policing, the CeaseFire program being led by James Carter, restructuring the Homicide Unit, and Save Our Sons; the list goes on. While these are great programs and have the potential to make our city safer for years to come, there is no immediate impact. I will do whatever it takes to save lives, stop the bleeding and stabilize our city to give these programs the opportunity to work.”

This unorthodox perspective underlines why Badon wishes to become the next Councilmember At-Large. As he explained, “My tenure in public office has always been about doing what’s best for New Orleans. I’m not part of any political organization or families; I don’t owe the old guard anything and I don’t practice their ‘what’s in it for me’ style politics. The only people I expect to be held accountable to are the citizens of New Orleans. I have the courage to stand up for what I believe in and, when disagreements arise, I have proven my ability to build coalitions and find workable solutions. That’s why I’m running, and that’s why the city needs me: We must stand together to move forward.”

He considers himself uniquely qualified due to his crossover appeal, in point of fact—the ability to stand apart from his party and still maintain close relationships on his side of the aisle. “I have the ability to maintain a productive relationship with my colleagues and build coalitions across fault lines no matter passionately we may disagree on an issue. I will always make a whole-hearted effort to find a workable solution, and if one can’t be reached, agree to disagree and move on. The clearest example of this was in 2008 when I authored a bill creating a scholarship program so our disadvantaged youth would have the opportunity to attend a private school they otherwise couldn’t afford. The issue was hotly debated in the legislature and my friend and colleague Karen Carter Peterson—who was Speaker Pro Tem at the time—was so vocal in her opposition to the bill that Governor Jindal started running vicious attack ads against her. I promptly called a press conference on the steps of the capitol demanding the Governor have the ads pulled, which he subsequently did. Working to make our government operate effectively is far more important than the politics of a single issue. I think I’m unique in my recognition of that fact.”

Badon outlined his top three campaign planks as “Do whatever it takes to bring peace to all of New Orleans and end this intolerable violence, follow through with former Councilmember Fielkow’s commitment to fully restore our recreation department to the acclaimed status it once had, [and] streamline operations in city hall by improving interdepartmental information-sharing, increasing the depth of citizen participation in the budgeting process and optimizing coordination between local, state and federal agencies; saving our citizens tax dollars and improving the quality of life for all New Orleanians.”

Of course, there is the subtext in finding a successor to Arnie Fielkow; should voters should care if the next Councilman At-Large is Black or white? To the question, Badon replied, “A candidate’s qualifications and ability to provide leadership are far more important than the candidate’s race. That being said, there seems to be a growing sense of frustration in the Black community because of the lack of strong African-American representation in local government. Only two of the seven school board members are Black; before Councilman Fielkow stepped down, there were only two African American Councilmembers. And that’s not the fault of the Black voters- it’s because of Black voters. I think our mayor, council and school board members got elected because they were the most qualified candidates, and that’s why we voted for them. I hope to be elected for the same reason.”

As a son of New Orleans East, Badon reflected this his home area “is on the verge of a renaissance“.

“So many good things are happening there—Wal-Mart’s opening a new store on Bullard, the new football stadium coming to Joe Brown Park, a new school is going to be build at Lake Forest and Wright, and Methodist Hospital is providing primary and urgent care and, with the mayor and state’s continued commitment, will again become the full-service hospital the East has lacked since Katrina. ([A]nd I’m proud to have moved this project forward with the help of the New Orleans legislative delegation by securing $8 million in capital outlay from the state.)

Still, despite the advances, the unrestored conditions of the East, like the city, motivated Badon to run. “With all that said, especially with Methodist on the up and up, there is no reason for Lake Forest Plaza to be in its current condition. The city has done a good job cracking down on residential blight with aggressive code enforcement and we need to take a similar approach with commercial blight. We can’t expect the East to fully repopulate without providing access to retailers and grocery stores. And we can’t expect businesses to come in when the area is covered in blight and squalor. Remediating the commercial blight at the Lake Forest site and bringing commerce back is the last piece.”

Speaking to critics of the restoration of the Ninth Ward, Badon noted, “As for the Brad Pitt homes—while I personally prefer traditional New Orleans architecture, I’m all for storm-proofed, energy-efficient, sustainable housing. I fully support environmentally sound construction; it’s cost-effective and good for the sustainability of our community. How­ever, I don’t think it’s the Council’s job to tell an architect how to design a home. As long as new builds and renovations meet housing standards and zoning ordinances, the more the merrier. “

Badon breaks with some of his colleagues in calling for more constitutional changes to make using eminent domain as a method to force landowners to fix easier. “Rep. Leger authored a Consti­tutional amendment during the 2010 session allowing expropriation of properties deemed a safety hazard or health risk, which I supported. It was later approved by the citizens of Louisiana and is now in effect. I think the mayor has done an excellent job remediating blight by bolstering code enforcement, though we need to make a concerted effort to crack down on commercial blight as well as fix up the city’s own properties. It’s unfair to ask property owners to clean up their mess when Six Flags, the World Trade Center and other public properties are in shambles. City government needs to live up to the standards and expectations we set for the people.”

Badon has been openly critical of the current City Council for rolling forward milliages after the law required them to roll back due to higher assessments. He called it a tax increase. As a councilman, he pledged, “I would certainly seek public input before deciding to roll millages forward and will ultimately do what I believe will be in their best interest,” but he stopped short in calling for an amendment to the city charter requiring public referendums before milliage roll forwards occur.

One contentious issue with preservationists and neighborhood activists that Badon has confronted on ending the I-10 route behind the French Quarter. He explained, “I’m certainly open to having the issue studied further, but as a resident of New Orleans East, I’m keenly aware of how bad traffic can get on I-10 headed inbound from the East. As much as residents along Claiborne dislike the overpass, I highly doubt they’d want that traffic inundating their neighborhood. If a plan to teardown the Claiborne overpass that accommodated the traffic flow on I-10 were presented, it would certainly merit consideration. But until a better option is offered, I don’t see how we could possibly tear it down.”

Where speaking of where regional inter-parish cooperation is politically possible, Badon returns to his core issue of battling criminal activity. “I believe that we must have regional inter-parish cooperation in our crime fighting efforts. Criminals don’t recognize parish boundaries and our law enforcement departments, including the district attorney offices, must work in a collaborative manner to address this continuing problem.”

This focus on crime has won Badon many plaudits in the White community and on the political Right. With the GNOR endorsement, many pundits have wondered if the African-American legislator has the chance at the official Republican party endorsement, having just won the Democratic party endorsement. In past years, it would seem that Stacy Head would be a proverbial shoe-in for the nod, but senior GOP officials grew angry with the District “B” Councilwoman when she voted, in a 5-2 decision to remove Lake Vista, Lake Terrace, and other parts of the traditional Republican Lakefront out of District “A”. That effectively ended any chance of electing a Republican to a seat on the City Council. (Moreover, it was not a position overly popular with African-American leaders either. One of the votes against the redistricting plan was from Cynthia Hedge Morrell, the District “D” Councilwoman who feared that the conservative Caucasian electorate added to her seat would dilute Black voting strength in an increasingly beleaguered majority-minority seat.)

Head went ahead and voted in favor, and some Republicans believe it could deny her the party’s endorsement in the next couple of weeks. The Orleans Parish GOP is allowed to endorse a Democrat in a race if no Republican is running. The nod has become one of the most influential endorsements in the City, and some have argued that Badon has a chance at it–over a White conservative Democrat.

He was quiet when asked of his interest in the Republican endorsement, simply replying, “I’m a proud Democrat, but I believe that leaders must do what is best for their constituents, not a political party. I have a proven record of working across party lines to do what is best for our people, and I will continue to do so as a councilmember.” But, he did admit finally that he’s actively seeking the official GOP nod.

In fact, Badon spoke proudly of getting the endorsements of the Orleans Parish Democratic Executive Committee (OPDEC) and the Greater New Orleans Republicans (GNOR) in the same week as highlighting his “credentials as a builder of diverse coalitions focused on producing real results established throughout his service in the legislature.”

“I’m running for Council At-Large because I believe that to solve our toughest problems, especially violent crime, we need to come together and work towards effective solutions, not paralyze our progress with divisive rhetoric,” said Badon. “These endorsements exemplify the kind of campaign I plan to run, my record as a legislator, and my goals if elected. I’m in this race to represent all of New Orleans, uniting and empowering our community to beat back our toughest challenges.”

This article was originally published in the February 6, 2012 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper