Rep. William J. Jefferson’s loyal voter base finally wore too thin. A Republican has unseated the 9-term Dem, who faces trial some time next year on public corruption charges. As a Congressman, Jefferson still had a chip to bargain with if he decided to plead guilty. He could have agreed to step down in exchange for a more lenient prison term. Now he’s about to lose that.
by Michelle Krupa and Frank Donze
The Times-Picayune
NEW ORLEANS — Indicted U.S. Rep. William Jefferson suffered what may be the final blow of his storied political career in the most improbable way Saturday, when an untested Republican opponent took advantage of Louisiana’s new federal voting rules — and an election delay caused by Hurricane Gustav — to unseat the nine-term Democrat.
With the upset victory, Anh “Joseph” Cao, a eastern New Orleans attorney who fled war-ravaged Saigon as a child, becomes the first Vietnamese-American in Congress. He will represent a district that was specifically drawn to give African-Americans an electoral advantage and one in which two of every three voters are registered Democrats.
MONDAY UPDATE: Jefferson Loses Congressional Salary and Possible Bargaining Chip (New Orleans Times-Picayune)
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