Madison Parish voters will have a lot to decide when visiting the polls for Saturday’s election, including who will be the next sheriff, who will represent District 21 at the state level, and how a number of other local races and statewide proposed amendments will fall.
In the race for Madison Parish sheriff, incumbent Sammie Byrd will face challenger Chad Ezell in a runoff after the two candidates received 30 and 32 percent of the votes, respectively, in October’s primary.
In the race for state representative for District 21, which includes Madison Parish, incumbent C. Travis Johnson will face challenger James (Jamie) Davis Jr. in a runoff. In October’s primary, Johnson pulled in 62 percent of the vote in Madison Parish, but failed to receive the needed 50 percent of votes district-wide to avoid a November runoff.
In other runoff elections in Madison Parish, Madison Parish Police Jury President Jane Gladys Sanders will face off with challenger C.J. Oney for the District 5 seat in a runoff.
In statewide races, the office of secretary of state will be decided in a runofff between Democrat “Gwen” Collins-Greenup and Republican Nancy Landry; attorney general in a runoff between Democrat Lindsey Cheek and Republican “Liz” Baker Murrill; treasurer in a runoff between Republican John Fleming and Democrat Dustin Granger.
Additionally, four proposed constitutional amendments will be on Saturday’s ballot, including Amendment 1, which would allow lawmakers to attempt to override gubernatorial vetoes of legislation during the regular session rather than calling a special session as is currently required. The amendment would clarify the governor’s deadlines for deciding on bills, as well; Amendment 2, which aims to remove six inactive funds from the Louisiana Constitution that are no longer being used for their intended purpose; Amendment 3, which would allow parishes to offer property tax exemptions to police, firefighters and first responders who own homes and live within the jurisdictions; and Amendment 4, which would change how the state spends money from its Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund, a savings account with about $2.2 billion from corporate income and franchise taxes, and dollars from oil and gas exploration.
Victor Skinner, contributor for The Center Square, contributed reporting to this story.
