Stephen Ortego
Encyclopedia
Stephen Juan Ortego is a Democratic
member-elect of the Louisiana House of Representatives
from Carencro
in Lafayette Parish. He was elected on November 19, 2011 and will assume office on January 9, 2012.
and reared near the city of Carencro
. Ortego graduated from Carencro High School
where he served as class president his senior year. He received a legislative scholarship to attend Tulane University
from State Representative Clara Baudoin. During his time at Tulane, he learned French at Université Sainte-Anne
and became a Louisiana French language activist. He also served as a Catholic missionary in Honduras where he designed and built homes. Ortego left Tulane University in 2007 with a Masters degree in architecture.
After Ortego left Tulane, he ran for State Representative for term-limited Baudoin's open seat in 2007. He ran against businessman (and former Carencro mayor) Tommy Angelle, Carencro City Council member Bobby Badon
, and former State Representative (and lone Republican) Raymond "La La" Lalonde. Ortego came in third in the primary, behind Badon and Lalonde. Badon went on to win the general election.
Following his defeat, Ortego remained active in the community, co-founding Scolafayette, a design-build firm specializing in energy-efficient homes in Acadiana
. He also serves on the board of the World Studies Institute of Louisiana, a group whose mission is to develop a French Immersion academy in Acadiana for high school students. He also worked with the Make It Right Foundation, an organization focused on rebuilding the 9th Ward in post-Katrina New Orleans.
After incumbent representative Bobby Badon
announced he was not running for reelection in August 2011, Ortego announced he was running for the seat again. He won a hard-fought race against the Democrat-turned-Republican Donald “Don” Menard, a small businessman and two-term President of St. Landry Parish. Ortego polled 4,457 (55 percent) to Menard's 3,651 (45 percent) in a the general election. This was a reversal of the primary election in which Menard polled 4,555(44 percent) to Ortego's 3590 (35 percent). Third party candidate James “Jamie” Arnaud polled 2,103 (21 percent).
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...
member-elect of the Louisiana House of Representatives
Louisiana State Legislature
The Louisiana State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is bicameral body, comprising the lower house, the Louisiana House of Representatives with 105 representatives, and the upper house, the Louisiana Senate with 39 senators...
from Carencro
Carencro, Louisiana
Carencro[p] is a small city in Lafayette Parish, Louisiana, United States. It is a suburb of the nearby city of Lafayette. The population was 6,120 at the 2000 census. Its name comes from the Louisiana Creole word for buzzard: the spot was one where large flocks of buzzards roosted in the bald...
in Lafayette Parish. He was elected on November 19, 2011 and will assume office on January 9, 2012.
Biography
Ortego was born in Opelousas, LouisianaOpelousas, Louisiana
Opelousas is a city in and the parish seat of St. Landry Parish, Louisiana, United States. It lies at the junction of Interstate 49 and U.S. Route 190. The population was 22,860 at the 2000 census. Although the 2006 population estimate was 23,222, a 2004 annexation should put the city's...
and reared near the city of Carencro
Carencro, Louisiana
Carencro[p] is a small city in Lafayette Parish, Louisiana, United States. It is a suburb of the nearby city of Lafayette. The population was 6,120 at the 2000 census. Its name comes from the Louisiana Creole word for buzzard: the spot was one where large flocks of buzzards roosted in the bald...
. Ortego graduated from Carencro High School
Carencro High School
Carencro High School is a Lafayette Parish high school located in Lafayette, Louisiana, United States. Carencro High School is one of six Lafayette Parish Public Schools. Geographically, the school is located approximately 3.5 miles north of Interstate 10 and approximately one mile west of...
where he served as class president his senior year. He received a legislative scholarship to attend Tulane University
Tulane University
Tulane University is a private, nonsectarian research university located in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States...
from State Representative Clara Baudoin. During his time at Tulane, he learned French at Université Sainte-Anne
Université Sainte-Anne
Université Sainte-Anne is a francophone university located in the seaside town of Pointe-de-l'Église in Nova Scotia, Canada. It is the only French-language university in the province of Nova Scotia and is one of only two such universities in the Maritime Provinces, the other being the Université...
and became a Louisiana French language activist. He also served as a Catholic missionary in Honduras where he designed and built homes. Ortego left Tulane University in 2007 with a Masters degree in architecture.
After Ortego left Tulane, he ran for State Representative for term-limited Baudoin's open seat in 2007. He ran against businessman (and former Carencro mayor) Tommy Angelle, Carencro City Council member Bobby Badon
Bobby Badon
Bobby Gene Badon is a farmer and businessman from Carencro, Louisiana, who is a departing one-term Democratic member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from District 39 . In 2012, the St. Martin Parish precincts will be removed from District 39.Badon graduated in 1968 from Northside High...
, and former State Representative (and lone Republican) Raymond "La La" Lalonde. Ortego came in third in the primary, behind Badon and Lalonde. Badon went on to win the general election.
Following his defeat, Ortego remained active in the community, co-founding Scolafayette, a design-build firm specializing in energy-efficient homes in Acadiana
Acadiana
Acadiana, or The Heart of Acadiana, is the official name given to the French Louisiana region that is home to a large Francophone population. Of the 64 parishes that make up Louisiana, 22 named parishes and other parishes of similar cultural environment, make up the intrastate...
. He also serves on the board of the World Studies Institute of Louisiana, a group whose mission is to develop a French Immersion academy in Acadiana for high school students. He also worked with the Make It Right Foundation, an organization focused on rebuilding the 9th Ward in post-Katrina New Orleans.
After incumbent representative Bobby Badon
Bobby Badon
Bobby Gene Badon is a farmer and businessman from Carencro, Louisiana, who is a departing one-term Democratic member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from District 39 . In 2012, the St. Martin Parish precincts will be removed from District 39.Badon graduated in 1968 from Northside High...
announced he was not running for reelection in August 2011, Ortego announced he was running for the seat again. He won a hard-fought race against the Democrat-turned-Republican Donald “Don” Menard, a small businessman and two-term President of St. Landry Parish. Ortego polled 4,457 (55 percent) to Menard's 3,651 (45 percent) in a the general election. This was a reversal of the primary election in which Menard polled 4,555(44 percent) to Ortego's 3590 (35 percent). Third party candidate James “Jamie” Arnaud polled 2,103 (21 percent).