Candidates qualify for Jeff. Parish election

By Christopher Tidmore
Contributing Writer

Jefferson Parish insiders expressed a degree of shock at the amount of integrity which long-time Gretna Police Chief Arthur Lawson demonstrated in his decision not to seek another term last week. He released a press release before qualifying began on January 29, 2025, thanking the public and announcing his intentions to retire.

Unmentioned but well-known, he hoped that his son Brett Lawson, a seasoned police officer himself, would be his successor. The younger Lawson dutifully qualified last Wednesday upon the opening of registration. That’s what surprised every insider. Until last Monday, Arthur Larson seemed primed to run for another term, scaring away any opponents, so why not pull a Chehardy?

The famous case of the incumbent Jefferson Parish assessor – walking into qualifying on the final day with his son, and then watching his son qualify for office unopposed in his place – has constituted a legendary handoff of power to the next generation. At the time, critics called it nepotism at its worst, yet Lawrence Chehardy Jr. remained a popular incumbent who never faced a serious challenge for decades thereafter.

Arthur Larson could have kept his silence until 4:55, walked into the clerk’s office with his son, and watched Brett sign up for the race unopposed. Instead, he telegraphed his intentions, and gave any candidate who wished to challenge ample time to qualify. Of course, the dilemma of any potential challenger is that campaign dollars may prove scarce this year against the popular Lawson name, which meant that as late as the morning of January 31 (when this newspaper went to press) Brett Larson had not received a challenger for police chief of Gretna.

State Rep. Ricky Templet did, however, in his quest to return to the Jefferson Parish Council. The mayor of Jean Lafitte, Timothy Kerner Jr., threw his hat in the proverbial ring. This sets up the District 1 race as a “Battle of Titans” from either end of the West Bank seat. A scion of the dynasty from the coastal city text squares off against the principal powerbroker from the main municipality further north. Making this even more complicated for Templet, Kerner’s father serves in the Louisiana House of Representatives with him. Both men are Republicans, but they are joined in the contest by Andrea Manuel, an African-American Democrat.

After losing his reelection to a third term as Westwego mayor by just 114 votes several years ago, John I. “Johnny” Shaddinger Jr. seeks to return to elective politics in running for the District 1 seat on the Westwego Council. He faces Republican Jason LeBlanc and Democrat Maggie “May” Campbell.

Timothy “Tim” Matherne faces a challenge from Johnny Nobles Jr. in the District 2 contest. Robert “Bobby” Black runs against Randy Carr (of Carr Drugs fame) for District 4, and Robert “Bobby B” Bonvillian faces Larry Warino for the District 5 seat on the Council. All are Republicans.

This article originally published in the February 3, 2025 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.