Jim Donelon
Encyclopedia
James J. "Jim" Donelon has been the Republican
insurance commissioner
of Louisiana
since February 15, 2006.
Donelon won a full-term as commissioner in the October 20, 2007 nonpartisan blanket primary. He finished with 606,534 votes (51 percent) and defeated three opponents, the closest of whom, Democrat
Jim Crowley, polled 423,722 (36 percent). Two other Republican candidates garnered the remaining 13 percent.
Donelon was first elected to complete a 15-month unexpired term as insurance commissioner in a special election held on September 30, 2006. He polled 50.1 percent of the ballots cast in a low-turnout election. His 283,316 votes were 847 more than the tabulations of his two opponents combined. Republican state Senator James David Cain
of Sabine Parish polled 222,414 (39 percent); S.B.A. Zaitoon of the Libertarian Party
, received 60,094 votes (11 percent). There was no Democrat in the special election. Donelon ran strongest in urban areas; Cain, in rural parishes and small towns.
Donelon became commissioner when Democrat J. Robert Wooley resigned to become a lobbyist for the high-powered law firm Adams and Reese in Baton Rouge. Wooley appointed Donelon as his first deputy in 2001, and under the Louisiana Constitution of 1974, Donelon automatically became temporary commissioner.
Wooley said that he chose Donelon to be his chief deputy because of Donelon's impeccable reputation and his extensive knowledge of insurance. "Jim was the only guy I knew who could help me restore the credibility and integrity of an office embarrassed because the three previous insurance commissioners had gone to jail ... [H]e is a consumer advocate who does the right thing for the right reasons, and he knows insurance inside and out. I believe he is the most qualified commissioner of insurance ever to assume the position", Wooley said.
President, the equivalent of Mayor of the large suburban parish outside New Orleans. He was elected to the Louisiana House of Representatives
in 1982, 1983, 1987, 1991, 1995, and 1999. He resigned midway through his fifth full term to join Wooley's staff.
In 1979, Donelon passed up a reelection bid to the Jefferson Parish Council to make an unsuccessful race for Lieutenant Governor against his then fellow Democrat, Robert Louis "Bobby" Freeman of Plaquemine
in Iberville Parish. Donelon was considered the "conservative" in that race to the "liberal" Freeman. Most of the supporters of David C. Treen
, the winner of the gubernatorial election that year, are believed to have backed Donelon, and most of the backers of Democrat Louis J. Lambert
went with Freeman. There was also a Republican in the race, Russel C. "Russ" Kiger, II, then a field representative of the National Cash Register Company based in Baton Rouge. Kiger said that his views parallelled those of Treen and claimed that his non-political technical background would have benefited state government. Yet, Kiger polled only 46,847 votes in the primary, fewer than half of the registered Republicans then on the Louisiana voter rolls, and was hence eliminated from the Donelon-Freeman general election. Jesse Monroe Knowles, a state senator and decorated World War II
veteran from Lake Charles
, was yet another candidate in the lieutenant governor's contest. Early in 1980, both Donelon and Knowles switched to Republican affiliation.
In the spring of 1980, Donelon ran unsuccessfully as the Republican consensus choice for the seat that Treen vacated in the United States House of Representatives
from the 3rd congressional district
. He was defeated by the Democrat Wilbert Joseph "Billy" Tauzin, II
. In 1998, Donelon lost a race for the U.S. Senate against the Democrat John B. Breaux
. Tauzin thereafter switched to Republican affiliation in 1995. Both Tauzin and Breaux retired from the House and Senate, respectively, in January 2005. In the spring of 1999, Donelon lost still another race to a fellow Republican for a state judgeship in Jefferson Parish.
, the University of New Orleans
, and Loyola University New Orleans School of Law. In 1986, he was the first recipient of the Homer L. Hitt Distinguished Alumnus of the Year award for the University of New Orleans.
Donelon serves on the Executive Committee of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) and is chairman of the NAIC Surplus Lines Task Force. He is also on the Board of Directors of the New Orleans Alliance for the Mentally Ill and the Blood Center for Southeast Louisiana. The Alliance for Good Government honored Donelon as both "Outstanding Jefferson Parish Official" and "Legislator of Distinction".
Donelon retired after 33 years of service as State Judge Advocate for the Louisiana Army National Guard
. He held the rank of colonel and received the prestigious Legion of Merit medal. Another former legislator, Peppi Bruneau
of New Orleans, was a lieutenant colonel in the Louisiana Air National Guard
.
in Lafourche Parish, who was the chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee. Also in the race was state Senator Anthony "Tony" Guarisco of Morgan City
in St. Mary Parish
, considered a "fiscal conservative" but a "social liberal", who was a strong proponent of the unratified Equal Rights Amendment
. Robert "Bob" Namer, who criticized the other three candidates for excessive campaign spending, also ran as a Democrat, but he later switched to the GOP
.
Tauzin filed with the Federal Election Commission a complaint which charged that Donelon's campaign donations were tainted. He cited Donelon's series of letters of credit with no interest required through the Jefferson Bank and Trust Company. Such loans violated federal election law, Tauzin noted. Donelon in turn claimed that the first Mrs. Tauzin obtained a $60,000 loan for her husband's campaign and criticized Tauzin for making "a friviolous charge . . . in the waning days of the campaign."
Former Governor Edwin Washington Edwards had initially told Donelon, who had been an Edwards aide prior to 1975, that Edwards would not become involved in the campaign. When Treen began to campaign for Donelon, Edwards endorsed Tauzin, a former floor leader for Edwards. Donelon entered the first round of balloting as a slight favorite in that he had won some 57 percent of the vote in the parishes which then comprised the Third District in the lieutenant governor's race against Bobby Freeman just seven months earlier. Guarisco, who was endorsed by the New Orleans Times-Picayune
, which had supported Treen for governor in 1979, said that he did not want the support of either Edwards or Treen because he was "independent of all that." Tauzin was also endorsed by Lieutenant Governor Freeman, Senator Russell B. Long
and Congressman John Breaux, whom Donelon would oppose 18 years later in a Senate race.
Donelon led in the first balloting with 37,191 votes (45.1 percent), but he had peaked and could not sufficiently broaden his appeal into the special election runoff. Tauzin followed with 35,384 ballots (42.9 percent); Guarisco had 8,827 (10.7 percent), and Namer only 1,0670 (1.3 percent). Donelon won his own Jefferson Parish with 67.4 percent and eked out a bare 50.5 percent in often Republican-leaning Iberia Parish at the western end of the district. In the other French parishes, Donelon fared poorly, taking just 14.9 percent in Tauzin's home base of Lafourche, 33.5 percent in Terrebonne Parish
(Houma
), 27.3 percent in St. Mary Parish, 30.2 percent in the two St. Martin Parish precincts in the district, and 38.7 percent in St. Charles Parish. Some 60 percent of Donelon's vote came from Jefferson Parish.
The Republican National Committee
joined the National Republican Congressional Committee
to raise money nationwide for Donelon. RNC Chairman William "Bill" Brock
of Tennessee
and congressional chairman Congressman Guy Vander Jagt
of Michigan
, said that funds were need to purchase media and newspaper advertising to reach undecided voters and to conduct a massive "get-out-the-vote" drive. Brock and Vander Jagt said that the Louisiana special election was "[a]n opportunity to hold this congressional seat. Donelon is an outstanding Republican and former Jefferson Parish president. His Democrat opponent [future Republican Tauzin] is pro-big labor and a big spender. Democrats and labor bosses will go all out with massive campaign blitz to win control of this district. Republican leaders in Louisiana join us in urgently requesting your immediate action to stop them ...".
The Republican effort to elect Donelon to hold the Treen seat fell short. Tauzin prevailed with 62,108 votes (53.1 percent) to Donelon's 54,815 ballots (46.9 percent). Donelon's 2/3 majority in Jefferson Parish was insufficient to offset huge Tauzin majorities in Lafourche, St. Charles, St. Mary, St. Martin, and Terrebonne parishes. In Iberia Parish, the two split the vote, with Tauzin securing 50.1 percent. The turnout in the May 17 special election runoff was 116,923, compared to 82,462 in the April 19 first round of balloting. The greater participation occurred despite flooding that inundated much of south Louisiana the previous day. Donelon announced after his defeat that he would not challenge Tauzin for a full term later in the year. Tauzin became unbeatable in the district. Even when he switched parties, he was then untouchable by a Democratic opponent.
, a Republican. Grisbaum, who became a judge on the new Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal in Gretna
, the seat of Jefferson Parish, had also run for Congress as a Democrat in 1974 against Republican Representative Treen. Grisbaum became a friend of Treen's during that campaign, and, in 1977, he switched parties while continuing his legislative service from Jefferson Parish. Grisbaum by 1980 had become one of Treen's point men in the legislature.
Donelon, who followed in Grisbaum's path, also has ties to Treen. It was then newly-inaugurated Governor Treen in 1980, who proposed that Republicans unite behind Donelon for the special election to choose Treen's congressional successor. In 1996–1997, the Christian Coalition gave him an overall 80 percent rating for that legislative session.
After he won repeated legislative reelection in Jefferson Parish, Donelon became his party's "sacrificial lamb" in 1998 against popular Democratic Senator John Breaux
of Crowley
in Acadia Parish, who was seeking his third and, as it turned out, final term in the U.S. Senate. Donelon stepped up to run when other candidates deferred to the inevitability of Breaux's reelection. The race was not close. Breaux won the nonpartisan blanket primary, often called the jungle primary, outright with 620,504 votes (64 percent). Donelon trailed with 306,616 (32 percent). The remaining 4 percent was shared by a half-dozen minor candidates, including L.D. Knox of Winnsboro
, who legally changed his name to "None of the Above" Knox to stress the need for greater candidate choice to reject all declared candidates.
Donelon held the legislative seat, District 98, for nineteen years until his resignation on June 30, 2001. As he took the position in the Department of Insurance, Donelon was succeeded by a fellow Republican, Thomas John "Tom" Capella. Before he left the legislature, Donelon ran in a special judicial election on March 27, 1999. He was defeated by Republican Ronald Bodenheimer
, who polled 8,981 votes (55 percent) to Donelon's 7,300 (45 percent). In that race Donelon had unsuccessfully used the slogan "Who Better to Interpret the Laws Than the Person Who Wrote Them". Bodenheimer, a former prosecutor, went to prison on conviction of having conspired to plant the prescription painkiller OxyContin in the automobile of an FBI informant who frequently complained about drug trafficking and zoning violations at the judge's marina.
In 1993, Donelon, along with fellow lawmakers Kernan "Skip" Hand
, Ken Hollis
, and Steve Theriot
, all of the New Orleans suburbs, admitted to having given Tulane University scholarships to their children. Legislators are allowed under an 1884 law to designate one Tulane scholarship recipient per year, but the practice of giving such awards, totaling $17,000 in 1993 dollars, to family members had been previously unknown.
"Given the unprecedented number of claims following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, one year is simply not going to be enough time for many policyholders and insurance companies to work out a settlement that is in the best interest of both", Donelon said. He asked insurers to file with his department on or before August 1, the necessary paperwork to put the extension into effect. Donelon conducted a month-long, statewide storm awareness tour: "As I talked to policyholders and insurance industry representatives throughout the state, I became certain that extending the prescriptive period is the right thing to do", Donelon said.
Wooley said that he had planned to resign prior to the hurricanes, "[but] when Katrina hit, we decided we had to try to get through at least the crisis part of it". Wooley said that he had accomplished most of his goals as commissioner prior to the hurricane, the most important of which was restoring the public image of the Department of Insurance.
Wooley joined the department in 1999 as then-Commissioner James H. "Jim" Brown's chief deputy. In the fall of 2000, Brown, a Democrat, was convicted of lying to an FBI agent, and Wooley moved up to the commissioner's position. Wooley was the first commissioner to leave office without a streak of scandal. His predecessors went to prison. Brown served a six-month sentence in the facility in Oakdale
in Allen Parish
. Democrat Douglas D. "Doug" Green of Baton Rouge received 25 years for his part in the Champion Insurance scandal of the late 1980s. Sherman A. Bernard, who is also remembered for having opposed the Democratic nomination of Senator Russell Long in 1974, served time for taking bribes.
Commissioner Donelon clashed with former Legislative Auditor Steve Theriot, one of Donelon's former legislative colleagues who had also obtained Tulane scholarships for a family member. As part of an investigation, Theriot demanded department records from Donelon regarding the Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Corporation. Theriot's probe led to the indictment of the corporation's former president, Terry Lisotta. Ultimately, Theriot had to obtain a court order to inspect the records, which Donelon originally said were off limits.
. Cain questioned Donelon's commitment to the Republican Party because of Donelon's acceptance of the staff appointment from the Democrat Wooley. Yet, Donelon has been a registered Republican for twenty years longer than has Cain. Cain's opponents say that he violated Ronald W. Reagan's "Eleventh Commandment": "Thou shall not speak ill of another Republican." Cain's state Senate term expired on January 14, 2008.
Cain attempted to taint Donelon into a "guilt by association" with the legal problems that past Louisiana insurance commissioners have endured. Donelon fired back. The Internet site bayoubuzz.com reported that Donelon courted local insurance agencies. He, like Wooley and Wooley’s former boss, Jim Brown, built a strong popularity with the industry's rank and file. Bayoubuzz.com also obtained a memo that seems to outline an aggressive strategy to appeal to frustrated homeowners still awaiting their benefits from Katrina and Rita damage. Donelon also pledged to continue Wooley's work at improving the image of the agency.
In his term as chairman of the Senate Insurance Committee, Cain criticized many of the policies of the Wooley administration, which Donelon has continued. Cain decried as "too little, too late" investigations by the Department of Insurance conducted against companies that tried to avoid reimbursing customers. He also attacked Donelon in the post-storm era, most notably over the continued operations of the Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Corporation.
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
insurance commissioner
Insurance commissioner
Insurance commissioner is an executive office in many U.S. states, some in the state cabinet. The office differs state by state:...
of Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
since February 15, 2006.
Donelon won a full-term as commissioner in the October 20, 2007 nonpartisan blanket primary. He finished with 606,534 votes (51 percent) and defeated three opponents, the closest of whom, Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
Jim Crowley, polled 423,722 (36 percent). Two other Republican candidates garnered the remaining 13 percent.
Donelon was first elected to complete a 15-month unexpired term as insurance commissioner in a special election held on September 30, 2006. He polled 50.1 percent of the ballots cast in a low-turnout election. His 283,316 votes were 847 more than the tabulations of his two opponents combined. Republican state Senator James David Cain
James David Cain
James David Cain, Sr. is a retired farmer and rancher from the Dry Creek community in eastern Beauregard Parish, who is a former Republican member of the Louisiana State Senate....
of Sabine Parish polled 222,414 (39 percent); S.B.A. Zaitoon of the Libertarian Party
Libertarian Party (United States)
The Libertarian Party is the third largest and fastest growing political party in the United States. The political platform of the Libertarian Party reflects its brand of libertarianism, favoring minimally regulated, laissez-faire markets, strong civil liberties, minimally regulated migration...
, received 60,094 votes (11 percent). There was no Democrat in the special election. Donelon ran strongest in urban areas; Cain, in rural parishes and small towns.
Donelon became commissioner when Democrat J. Robert Wooley resigned to become a lobbyist for the high-powered law firm Adams and Reese in Baton Rouge. Wooley appointed Donelon as his first deputy in 2001, and under the Louisiana Constitution of 1974, Donelon automatically became temporary commissioner.
Wooley said that he chose Donelon to be his chief deputy because of Donelon's impeccable reputation and his extensive knowledge of insurance. "Jim was the only guy I knew who could help me restore the credibility and integrity of an office embarrassed because the three previous insurance commissioners had gone to jail ... [H]e is a consumer advocate who does the right thing for the right reasons, and he knows insurance inside and out. I believe he is the most qualified commissioner of insurance ever to assume the position", Wooley said.
Winning and losing
In 1975, Donelon ran successfully for Jefferson ParishJefferson Parish, Louisiana
Jefferson Parish is a parish in Louisiana, United States that includes most of the suburbs of New Orleans. The seat of parish government is Gretna....
President, the equivalent of Mayor of the large suburban parish outside New Orleans. He was elected to the Louisiana House of Representatives
Louisiana House of Representatives
The Louisiana House of Representatives is the lower house in the Louisiana State Legislature, the state legislature of the US state of Louisiana. The House is composed of 105 Representatives, each of whom represents approximately 42,500 people . Members serve four-year terms with a term limit of...
in 1982, 1983, 1987, 1991, 1995, and 1999. He resigned midway through his fifth full term to join Wooley's staff.
In 1979, Donelon passed up a reelection bid to the Jefferson Parish Council to make an unsuccessful race for Lieutenant Governor against his then fellow Democrat, Robert Louis "Bobby" Freeman of Plaquemine
Plaquemine, Louisiana
Plaquemine is a city in and the parish seat of Iberville Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 7,064 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Statistical Area....
in Iberville Parish. Donelon was considered the "conservative" in that race to the "liberal" Freeman. Most of the supporters of David C. Treen
David C. Treen
David Conner "Dave" Treen, Sr. , was an American attorney and politician from Mandeville, St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana – the first Republican Governor of the U.S. state of Louisiana since Reconstruction. He was the first Republican in modern times to have served in the U.S...
, the winner of the gubernatorial election that year, are believed to have backed Donelon, and most of the backers of Democrat Louis J. Lambert
Louis Lambert
Louis Joseph Lambert, Jr. , is a Louisiana attorney, businessman, former member and chairman of the Louisiana Public Service Commission, and a former Louisiana state senator....
went with Freeman. There was also a Republican in the race, Russel C. "Russ" Kiger, II, then a field representative of the National Cash Register Company based in Baton Rouge. Kiger said that his views parallelled those of Treen and claimed that his non-political technical background would have benefited state government. Yet, Kiger polled only 46,847 votes in the primary, fewer than half of the registered Republicans then on the Louisiana voter rolls, and was hence eliminated from the Donelon-Freeman general election. Jesse Monroe Knowles, a state senator and decorated World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
veteran from Lake Charles
Lake Charles, Louisiana
Lake Charles is the fifth-largest incorporated city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, located on Lake Charles, Prien Lake, and the Calcasieu River. Located in Calcasieu Parish, a major cultural, industrial, and educational center in the southwest region of the state, and one of the most important in...
, was yet another candidate in the lieutenant governor's contest. Early in 1980, both Donelon and Knowles switched to Republican affiliation.
In the spring of 1980, Donelon ran unsuccessfully as the Republican consensus choice for the seat that Treen vacated in the United States House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from the 3rd congressional district
Louisiana's 3rd congressional district
Louisiana's 3rd congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The district surrounds the southern tier of the Greater New Orleans Area. The district contains large portions of southeastern and south central Louisiana, including River Parishes and East Acadiana...
. He was defeated by the Democrat Wilbert Joseph "Billy" Tauzin, II
Billy Tauzin
Wilbert Joseph Tauzin II , usually known as Billy Tauzin, American lobbyist and politician of Cajun descent, was President and CEO of PhRMA, a pharmaceutical company lobby group...
. In 1998, Donelon lost a race for the U.S. Senate against the Democrat John B. Breaux
John Breaux
John Berlinger Breaux is a former United States senator from Louisiana who served from 1987 until 2005. He was also a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1972 to 1987. He was considered one of the more conservative national legislators from the Democratic Party...
. Tauzin thereafter switched to Republican affiliation in 1995. Both Tauzin and Breaux retired from the House and Senate, respectively, in January 2005. In the spring of 1999, Donelon lost still another race to a fellow Republican for a state judgeship in Jefferson Parish.
Early years and military services
Donelon was born in New Orleans. He graduated from Jesuit High SchoolJesuit High School (New Orleans)
Jesuit High School is an all-male Catholic high school in New Orleans, Louisiana. The school was founded in 1847. It is located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans....
, the University of New Orleans
University of New Orleans
The University of New Orleans, often referred to locally as UNO, is a medium-sized public urban university located on the New Orleans Lakefront within New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. It is a member of the LSU System and the Urban 13 association. Currently UNO is without a proper chancellor...
, and Loyola University New Orleans School of Law. In 1986, he was the first recipient of the Homer L. Hitt Distinguished Alumnus of the Year award for the University of New Orleans.
Donelon serves on the Executive Committee of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) and is chairman of the NAIC Surplus Lines Task Force. He is also on the Board of Directors of the New Orleans Alliance for the Mentally Ill and the Blood Center for Southeast Louisiana. The Alliance for Good Government honored Donelon as both "Outstanding Jefferson Parish Official" and "Legislator of Distinction".
Donelon retired after 33 years of service as State Judge Advocate for the Louisiana Army National Guard
Louisiana Army National Guard
The Louisiana Army National Guard is a component of the United States Army and the United States National Guard. The Constitution of the United States specifically charges the National Guard with dual federal and state missions. In fact, the National Guard is the only United States military force...
. He held the rank of colonel and received the prestigious Legion of Merit medal. Another former legislator, Peppi Bruneau
Peppi Bruneau
Charles Emile Bruneau, Jr., known as Peppi Bruneau , is an attorney from New Orleans, Louisiana, who represented District 94 in the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1976 until his retirement in April 2007....
of New Orleans, was a lieutenant colonel in the Louisiana Air National Guard
Louisiana Air National Guard
The Louisiana Air National Guard is the air force militia of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is, along with the Louisiana Army National Guard, an element of the Louisiana National Guard...
.
U.S. House campaign, 1980
On February 20, 1980, he switched to Republican affiliation to run for the Third Congressional District seat vacated when David Treen became governor. Treen urged the party to coalesce behind Donelon even though there were other longer-tenured Republicans who were interested in making the race. Donelon attracted three Democratic opponents in the special election. The strongest was state Representative Billy Tauzin, then of ThibodauxThibodaux, Louisiana
Thibodaux is a small city in and the parish seat of Lafourche Parish, Louisiana, United States, along the banks of Bayou Lafourche in the northwestern part of the parish. The population was 14,431 at the 2000 census. Thibodaux is a principal city of the Houma–Bayou Cane–Thibodaux...
in Lafourche Parish, who was the chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee. Also in the race was state Senator Anthony "Tony" Guarisco of Morgan City
Morgan City, Louisiana
Morgan City is a city in St. Martin and St. Mary parishes in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The population was 12,404 at the 2010 census....
in St. Mary Parish
St. Mary Parish, Louisiana
St. Mary Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The parish seat is Franklin. As of 2000, the population was 53,500.The Morgan City Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of St. Mary Parish.-Geography:...
, considered a "fiscal conservative" but a "social liberal", who was a strong proponent of the unratified Equal Rights Amendment
Equal Rights Amendment
The Equal Rights Amendment was a proposed amendment to the United States Constitution. The ERA was originally written by Alice Paul and, in 1923, it was introduced in the Congress for the first time...
. Robert "Bob" Namer, who criticized the other three candidates for excessive campaign spending, also ran as a Democrat, but he later switched to the GOP
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
.
Tauzin filed with the Federal Election Commission a complaint which charged that Donelon's campaign donations were tainted. He cited Donelon's series of letters of credit with no interest required through the Jefferson Bank and Trust Company. Such loans violated federal election law, Tauzin noted. Donelon in turn claimed that the first Mrs. Tauzin obtained a $60,000 loan for her husband's campaign and criticized Tauzin for making "a friviolous charge . . . in the waning days of the campaign."
Former Governor Edwin Washington Edwards had initially told Donelon, who had been an Edwards aide prior to 1975, that Edwards would not become involved in the campaign. When Treen began to campaign for Donelon, Edwards endorsed Tauzin, a former floor leader for Edwards. Donelon entered the first round of balloting as a slight favorite in that he had won some 57 percent of the vote in the parishes which then comprised the Third District in the lieutenant governor's race against Bobby Freeman just seven months earlier. Guarisco, who was endorsed by the New Orleans Times-Picayune
New Orleans Times-Picayune
The Times-Picayune is a daily newspaper published in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA.-History:Established as The Picayune in 1837 by Francis Lumsden and George Wilkins Kendall, the paper's initial price was one picayune—a Spanish coin equivalent to 6¼¢ .Under Eliza Jane Nicholson, who inherited the...
, which had supported Treen for governor in 1979, said that he did not want the support of either Edwards or Treen because he was "independent of all that." Tauzin was also endorsed by Lieutenant Governor Freeman, Senator Russell B. Long
Russell B. Long
Russell Billiu Long was an American Democratic politician and United States Senator from Louisiana from 1948 until 1987.-Early life:...
and Congressman John Breaux, whom Donelon would oppose 18 years later in a Senate race.
Donelon led in the first balloting with 37,191 votes (45.1 percent), but he had peaked and could not sufficiently broaden his appeal into the special election runoff. Tauzin followed with 35,384 ballots (42.9 percent); Guarisco had 8,827 (10.7 percent), and Namer only 1,0670 (1.3 percent). Donelon won his own Jefferson Parish with 67.4 percent and eked out a bare 50.5 percent in often Republican-leaning Iberia Parish at the western end of the district. In the other French parishes, Donelon fared poorly, taking just 14.9 percent in Tauzin's home base of Lafourche, 33.5 percent in Terrebonne Parish
Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana
Terrebonne Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The parish seat is Houma. Its population was 111,860...
(Houma
Houma, Louisiana
Houma is a city in and the parish seat of Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana, and the largest principal city of the Houma–Bayou Cane–Thibodaux Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city's powers of government have been absorbed by the parish, which is now run by the Terrebonne Parish...
), 27.3 percent in St. Mary Parish, 30.2 percent in the two St. Martin Parish precincts in the district, and 38.7 percent in St. Charles Parish. Some 60 percent of Donelon's vote came from Jefferson Parish.
The Republican National Committee
Republican National Committee
The Republican National Committee is an American political committee that provides national leadership for the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican political platform, as well as coordinating fundraising and election strategy. It is...
joined the National Republican Congressional Committee
National Republican Congressional Committee
The National Republican Congressional Committee is the Republican Hill committee which works to elect Republicans to the United States House of Representatives....
to raise money nationwide for Donelon. RNC Chairman William "Bill" Brock
Bill Brock
William Emerson "Bill" Brock III is a former Republican United States senator from Tennessee, having served from 1971 to 1977. He is the grandson of William Emerson Brock I, who was a Democratic U.S. senator from Tennessee from 1929 to 1931.-Early life and career:Brock was a native of Chattanooga,...
of Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
and congressional chairman Congressman Guy Vander Jagt
Guy Vander Jagt
Guy Adrian Vander Jagt was a Republican politician from Michigan. He was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives and Chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee....
of Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
, said that funds were need to purchase media and newspaper advertising to reach undecided voters and to conduct a massive "get-out-the-vote" drive. Brock and Vander Jagt said that the Louisiana special election was "[a]n opportunity to hold this congressional seat. Donelon is an outstanding Republican and former Jefferson Parish president. His Democrat opponent [future Republican Tauzin] is pro-big labor and a big spender. Democrats and labor bosses will go all out with massive campaign blitz to win control of this district. Republican leaders in Louisiana join us in urgently requesting your immediate action to stop them ...".
The Republican effort to elect Donelon to hold the Treen seat fell short. Tauzin prevailed with 62,108 votes (53.1 percent) to Donelon's 54,815 ballots (46.9 percent). Donelon's 2/3 majority in Jefferson Parish was insufficient to offset huge Tauzin majorities in Lafourche, St. Charles, St. Mary, St. Martin, and Terrebonne parishes. In Iberia Parish, the two split the vote, with Tauzin securing 50.1 percent. The turnout in the May 17 special election runoff was 116,923, compared to 82,462 in the April 19 first round of balloting. The greater participation occurred despite flooding that inundated much of south Louisiana the previous day. Donelon announced after his defeat that he would not challenge Tauzin for a full term later in the year. Tauzin became unbeatable in the district. Even when he switched parties, he was then untouchable by a Democratic opponent.
Election to legislature, 1982
In a special election in 1982, Donelon won the seat vacated by the resignation of Representative Charles Grisbaum, Jr.Charles Grisbaum, Jr.
Charles H. Grisbaum, Jr. is the retired chief judge of the Louisiana Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in the New Orleans suburbs. The court is located in Gretna, the seat of Jefferson Parish...
, a Republican. Grisbaum, who became a judge on the new Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal in Gretna
Gretna, Louisiana
The city of Gretna is the parish seat of Jefferson Parish, in the US state of Louisiana. Gretna is on the west bank of the Mississippi River, just east and across the river from uptown New Orleans. It is part of the New Orleans–Metairie–Kenner Metropolitan Statistical Area...
, the seat of Jefferson Parish, had also run for Congress as a Democrat in 1974 against Republican Representative Treen. Grisbaum became a friend of Treen's during that campaign, and, in 1977, he switched parties while continuing his legislative service from Jefferson Parish. Grisbaum by 1980 had become one of Treen's point men in the legislature.
Donelon, who followed in Grisbaum's path, also has ties to Treen. It was then newly-inaugurated Governor Treen in 1980, who proposed that Republicans unite behind Donelon for the special election to choose Treen's congressional successor. In 1996–1997, the Christian Coalition gave him an overall 80 percent rating for that legislative session.
After he won repeated legislative reelection in Jefferson Parish, Donelon became his party's "sacrificial lamb" in 1998 against popular Democratic Senator John Breaux
John Breaux
John Berlinger Breaux is a former United States senator from Louisiana who served from 1987 until 2005. He was also a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1972 to 1987. He was considered one of the more conservative national legislators from the Democratic Party...
of Crowley
Crowley, Louisiana
Crowley is a city in and the parish seat of Acadia Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 14,225 at the 2000 census. The city is noted for its annual International Rice Festival. Crowley has the nickname of "Rice Capital of America", because at one time it was a major center for...
in Acadia Parish, who was seeking his third and, as it turned out, final term in the U.S. Senate. Donelon stepped up to run when other candidates deferred to the inevitability of Breaux's reelection. The race was not close. Breaux won the nonpartisan blanket primary, often called the jungle primary, outright with 620,504 votes (64 percent). Donelon trailed with 306,616 (32 percent). The remaining 4 percent was shared by a half-dozen minor candidates, including L.D. Knox of Winnsboro
Winnsboro, Louisiana
Winnsboro is a city in and the parish seat of Franklin Parish, Louisiana, United States. As of July 2009, the estimated city population was 4,377...
, who legally changed his name to "None of the Above" Knox to stress the need for greater candidate choice to reject all declared candidates.
Donelon held the legislative seat, District 98, for nineteen years until his resignation on June 30, 2001. As he took the position in the Department of Insurance, Donelon was succeeded by a fellow Republican, Thomas John "Tom" Capella. Before he left the legislature, Donelon ran in a special judicial election on March 27, 1999. He was defeated by Republican Ronald Bodenheimer
Ronald Bodenheimer
Ronald Bodenheimer was a judge in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, convicted of various federal charges resulting, in part, from an FBI probe called Operation Wrinkled Robe...
, who polled 8,981 votes (55 percent) to Donelon's 7,300 (45 percent). In that race Donelon had unsuccessfully used the slogan "Who Better to Interpret the Laws Than the Person Who Wrote Them". Bodenheimer, a former prosecutor, went to prison on conviction of having conspired to plant the prescription painkiller OxyContin in the automobile of an FBI informant who frequently complained about drug trafficking and zoning violations at the judge's marina.
In 1993, Donelon, along with fellow lawmakers Kernan "Skip" Hand
Kernan "Skip" Hand
Kernan August Hand, Sr., known as Kernan "Skip" Hand , is a retired state court judge of the 24th Judicial District from Kenner in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana. A Republican, Hand served in the "Division H" judgeship from the spring of 1994 until his retirement on December 31, 2008...
, Ken Hollis
Ken Hollis
Jesse Kendrick Hollis, Jr., known as Ken Hollis , was a Republican Party member of the Louisiana State Senate from Metairie in Jefferson Parish in the New Orleans suburbs...
, and Steve Theriot
Steve Theriot
Steven J. Theriot, known as Steve Theriot , is a Certified Public Accountant from Marrero in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, USA, who served as his state’s legislative auditor from 2004–2009 and as a Democratic member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1988-1996.-State legislator:Theriot...
, all of the New Orleans suburbs, admitted to having given Tulane University scholarships to their children. Legislators are allowed under an 1884 law to designate one Tulane scholarship recipient per year, but the practice of giving such awards, totaling $17,000 in 1993 dollars, to family members had been previously unknown.
As Insurance Commissioner
Donelon served in the Louisiana State House while he maintained his private law practice. In the legislature, he was chairman of the Committee on Insurance and Co-Chairman of the Republican legislative delegation. On June 5, 2006, then Commissioner Donelon issued Advisory Letter 06-04 to the approximately one hundred companies with homeowners insurance policies in Louisiana. The letter requests their cooperation in extending from one to two years the prescriptive period for policyholders with Hurricane Katrina and/or Rita claims. In most cases, a Louisiana policyholder's right to file suit on a homeowners insurance claim is limited to twelve months."Given the unprecedented number of claims following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, one year is simply not going to be enough time for many policyholders and insurance companies to work out a settlement that is in the best interest of both", Donelon said. He asked insurers to file with his department on or before August 1, the necessary paperwork to put the extension into effect. Donelon conducted a month-long, statewide storm awareness tour: "As I talked to policyholders and insurance industry representatives throughout the state, I became certain that extending the prescriptive period is the right thing to do", Donelon said.
Wooley said that he had planned to resign prior to the hurricanes, "[but] when Katrina hit, we decided we had to try to get through at least the crisis part of it". Wooley said that he had accomplished most of his goals as commissioner prior to the hurricane, the most important of which was restoring the public image of the Department of Insurance.
Wooley joined the department in 1999 as then-Commissioner James H. "Jim" Brown's chief deputy. In the fall of 2000, Brown, a Democrat, was convicted of lying to an FBI agent, and Wooley moved up to the commissioner's position. Wooley was the first commissioner to leave office without a streak of scandal. His predecessors went to prison. Brown served a six-month sentence in the facility in Oakdale
Oakdale, Louisiana
Oakdale is a small city in Allen Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 8,137 at the 2000 census.Oakdale was founded as "Dunnsville" by William T. Dunn...
in Allen Parish
Allen Parish, Louisiana
Allen Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The parish seat is Oberlin. As of the 2000 census, the population was 25,440. Allen Parish is in southwestern Louisiana, southwest of Alexandria....
. Democrat Douglas D. "Doug" Green of Baton Rouge received 25 years for his part in the Champion Insurance scandal of the late 1980s. Sherman A. Bernard, who is also remembered for having opposed the Democratic nomination of Senator Russell Long in 1974, served time for taking bribes.
Commissioner Donelon clashed with former Legislative Auditor Steve Theriot, one of Donelon's former legislative colleagues who had also obtained Tulane scholarships for a family member. As part of an investigation, Theriot demanded department records from Donelon regarding the Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Corporation. Theriot's probe led to the indictment of the corporation's former president, Terry Lisotta. Ultimately, Theriot had to obtain a court order to inspect the records, which Donelon originally said were off limits.
September 30, 2006, special election
In the special election, Donelon faced a fellow Democrat-turned-Republican in state Senator James David Cain of Dry CreekDry Creek, Louisiana
Dry Creek is a rural unincorporated community in the east-central portion of Beauregard Parish, Louisiana, United States. It lies 20 miles southeast of Deridder on the corner of LA 113 and LA 394...
. Cain questioned Donelon's commitment to the Republican Party because of Donelon's acceptance of the staff appointment from the Democrat Wooley. Yet, Donelon has been a registered Republican for twenty years longer than has Cain. Cain's opponents say that he violated Ronald W. Reagan's "Eleventh Commandment": "Thou shall not speak ill of another Republican." Cain's state Senate term expired on January 14, 2008.
Cain attempted to taint Donelon into a "guilt by association" with the legal problems that past Louisiana insurance commissioners have endured. Donelon fired back. The Internet site bayoubuzz.com reported that Donelon courted local insurance agencies. He, like Wooley and Wooley’s former boss, Jim Brown, built a strong popularity with the industry's rank and file. Bayoubuzz.com also obtained a memo that seems to outline an aggressive strategy to appeal to frustrated homeowners still awaiting their benefits from Katrina and Rita damage. Donelon also pledged to continue Wooley's work at improving the image of the agency.
In his term as chairman of the Senate Insurance Committee, Cain criticized many of the policies of the Wooley administration, which Donelon has continued. Cain decried as "too little, too late" investigations by the Department of Insurance conducted against companies that tried to avoid reimbursing customers. He also attacked Donelon in the post-storm era, most notably over the continued operations of the Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Corporation.
October 22, 2011 Election
Donelon was challenged for his second full term as commissioner in the primary held on October 22, 2011, by public-interest attorney Donald C. Hodge. During the campaign, questions arose about the ethics of the Department of Insurance, the high cost of insurance rates, and the amount of funds that Donelon received from insurance companies. Donelon, however, handily prevailed with 651,285 votes (67.5 percent) to Hodge's 313,931 (32.5 percent).Family
A Roman Catholic, Donelon is married to the former Merilynn Boudreaux. They reside in Jefferson Parish and are the parents of four daughters and, to date, the grandparents of five granddaughters and one grandson.Links
- http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/1998/10/15/politics/main20096.shtml
- http://www.ldi.state.la.us/Donelon_bio.htm
- http://www.louisianaweekly.com/weekly/news/articlegate.pl?20060626v
- http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/2251077.html
- http://www.bayoubuzz.com/articles.aspx?aid=6528
- http://www.yourlawyer.com/articles/read/11826
- http://www.sos.louisiana.gov:8090/cgibin/?rqstyp=elcms2&rqsdta=032799
- http://www.enlou.com/officeholders/housedistrict88.htm
- http://www.ldi.state.la.us/
- http://www.peerreview.org/donelon/about.htm
- http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/southcentral/2006/02/17/65576.htm
- http://www.sos.louisiana.gov:8090/cgibin/?rqstyp=elcms2&rqsdta=110398
- http://www.louisianaweekly.com/weekly/news/articlegate.pl?20010709c
- http://www.vote-smart.org/issue_rating_category.php?can_id=BS022540&type=category&category=Conservative&go.x=6&go.y=7
- http://www.sos.louisiana.gov:8090/cgibin/?rqstyp=elcms2&rqsdta=093006