Louisiana

Verne Kennedy, whose polls influenced decades of Louisiana politics, is dead at 83

Published

1 year ago

March 7, 2025

Verne Kennedy, whose polls influenced decades of Louisiana politics, is dead at 83

Only political insiders knew his name, but Verne Kennedy played a significant role for decades in deciding who would be elected governor of Louisiana.

Kennedy was a pollster whose survey results helped candidates craft messages for voters. Former governors Edwin Edwards and David Treen were among his clients.

Kennedy’s data also helped business owners decide who to bet their money on.

Kennedy earned a reputation for accuracy because he relied on the numbers and historical trends, not on hunches.

Kennedy, 83, died on Feb. 28 in Gulf Breeze, Florida. He had two children and was married to his wife Martha for 61 years.

Kennedy grew up at Jackson Barracks in New Orleans — his mother’s father Raymond Fleming was the adjutant general of the Louisiana National Guard for 28 years — and went on to obtain a Ph.D. from LSU.

After serving as a college professor and for eight years as president of Belhaven College in Jackson, Mississippi, Kennedy devoted himself full time to his company, Market Research Insight. The company would go on to conduct over 5,000 marketing and political surveys in all 50 states.

Besides working for candidates, Kennedy did polling for a group of about 20 business owners for Louisiana governor’s races from 1995 through 2023.

“We wanted to pick someone who wasn’t in Louisiana or was tied to any candidate and did good research,” said Randy Haynie, a veteran lobbyist in Baton Rouge who was a member of the group that hired Kennedy. “We trusted Verne. He gave us the numbers straight up.”

John Georges, who owns The Advocate | The Times-Picayune, was the organizer of the group for many years.

“He was about the science and not the art of politics,” Georges said.

Kennedy didn’t just poll on governor’s races in Louisiana. In Jefferson Parish, for example, he did surveys for such candidates as former Sheriff Newell Normand and former assessor Lawrence Chehardy, said Bob d’Hemecourt, a veteran political operative.

In 2022, Kennedy was inducted into the Louisiana Political Hall of Fame.

In 2023, Kennedy told the business group that his data showed something that few were predicting: then-Attorney General Jeff Landry had a shot at being elected governor outright in the primary. And that’s what happened.

The business group always offered to have Kennedy explain his findings to the different campaigns in race, although not all of the candidates liked what they heard.

That was especially true during the 2015 governor’s race.

Kennedy’s first poll in May that year showed then-U.S. Sen. David Vitter, the Republican who was the heavy favorite, leading with 36% of the vote, with John Bel Edwards, a little-known Democratic state representative, running second with 27%.

But because African-American voters typically gave 90% of their vote to the Democratic candidate, Kennedy redistributed the numbers by giving 90% of the undecided Black voters to Edwards. That gave him 35%, and as news of Kennedy’s survey spread, Edwards suddenly gained credibility as a candidate among the political class.

In July, after Kennedy re-allocated 90% of the African-American vote to Edwards, his numbers showed the Democrat leading with 34%, while Vitter and then-Public Service Commissioner Scott Angelle, a Republican, both had 21%. Given that virtually all voters knew Vitter from his years in public office, Kennedy deduced that Vitter had little room to grow.

Kennedy advised Vitter’s campaign manager, Kyle Ruckert, that Vitter ought to seriously consider not even qualifying for the fall election. Instead, Ruckert went into damage control mode and publicly blasted Kennedy, saying he had engaged in “fantasy land polling.”

The pollster threatened to sue Vitter for libel. He didn’t follow through on that because he ended up getting the last laugh.

Edwards soundly defeated Vitter in the runoff election, 56% to 44%.

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Louisiana

Louisiana State Police provide update on officer-involved shooting in Gonzales

Published

9 hours ago

March 7, 2026

Press Room

Louisiana State Police provide update on officer-involved shooting in Gonzales

Louisiana State Police released updated information regarding an officer-involved shooting March 5 in Ascension Parish.

According to an LSP news release, the preliminary investigation found that a Gonzales Police Department officer conducted a traffic stop at around 10:45 p.m. near the intersection of South John Street and Orice Roth Road.

In the release, LSP identified the driver of the vehicle as 21-year-old Anthony Talbert of Baton Rouge, who was accompanied by a female passenger.

During the stop, Talbert allegedly reached toward a firearm that was inside the vehicle, per the release.

The officer responded by discharging a department-issued firearm one time, which grazed both Talbert and the unidentified female, the release continued.

According to police, Talbert then fled the scene, exceeding 100 miles per hour and disregarding multiple traffic controls.

Troopers reported Talbert was taken into custody following a short pursuit.

He was booked into the Ascension Parish Jail on charges of aggravated flight, reckless operation, obstruction of justice and possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony, police said in the release.

Per troopers, the female was transported to a hospital and was treated for minor injuries.

LSP’s initial news release reported no officers were injured.

According to police, the investigation remained active and further information would be released as available.

Michael Tortorich is a journalist for the USA Today Network in Louisiana.

Gonzales Weekly Citizen and Donaldsonville Chief, part of the USA Today Network of Louisiana, cover Ascension Parish and the greater Baton Rouge area. Follow at facebook.com/WeeklyCitizen and facebook.com/DonaldsonvilleChief.

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Louisiana

Should Shreveport homeowners buy earthquake insurance in Louisiana?

Published

21 hours ago

March 6, 2026

Press Room

Should Shreveport homeowners buy earthquake insurance in Louisiana?

A 4.9 magnitude earthquake, the strongest in Louisiana’s onshore history, struck near Shreveport.
Standard homeowner’s insurance policies typically do not cover earthquake damage.
Property owners can purchase add-on earthquake coverage, which is generally inexpensive in low-risk areas like Louisiana.
Despite the low cost, the deductible for earthquake insurance is usually high.

Thursday’s earthquake that shook furniture and rattled pipes in the Shreveport region may have some property owners wondering whether they should consider buying insurance to cover them from potential stronger movement in the future.

The 4.9 magnitude earthquake that struck just north of Coushatta at 5:30 a.m. March 5 was the strongest onshore event in Louisiana history.

No structural damage has been reported from Thursday’s earthquake so far, but the strength of the movement may have been enough to raise concern.

“If people are concerned they should call their insurance agent and explore pricing and options,” Louisiana Insurance Commissioner Tim Temple said in an interview with USA Today Network.

“It’s not an issue that has come up often in Louisiana, but if coverage can alleviate anxiety and risk it’s absolutely something homeowners and property owners should consult their agent about,” he said.

Earth movement or subsidence insurance is generally excluded from homeowners’ policies, as is flood insurance, but property owners can secure the coverage through their insurers as an add-on, called an endorsement.

Eugene Montgomery, owner of Community Financial Insurance Center in northern Louisiana, said a subsidence endorsement to cover earthquake damage would generally be inexpensive in Louisiana because of the low risk.

“The coverage itself is inexpensive, but the deductible would be high,” Montgomery told USA Today Network.

That’s the case for one Shreveport homeowner who asked not to be identified. The homeowner secured a subsidence endorsement following Thursday’s earthquake that cost $120 per year after discounts with a 10% deductible.

Republican state Sen. Adam Bass, who also operates an Allstate agency in Bossier, said most people won’t buy an add-on that’s not required by their mortgage holders no matter how inexpensive it is.

Bass said he hasn’t had any inquiries about earth movement insurance during his career.

But Montgomery said he remembers a temporary spike in those policies in 1990 when climatologist Iben Brown predicted a major earthquake would strike the New Madrid Fault in Missouri on Dec. 3 of that year, a forecast that flopped.

“It really created a little bit of a panic,” Montgomery said. “Everybody wanted insurance for a short period of time.”

Montgomery doesn’t expect a similar run on earthquake after Thursday’s event, but said he won’t be surprised if some level of interest increases.

“When people can actually feel the earth moving it gets their attention,” he said.

Greg Hilburn covers state politics for the USA TODAY Network of Louisiana. Follow him on Twitter @GregHilburn1.

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Louisiana

Louisiana delegation responds with mixed reaction to leadership change at DHS

Published

1 day ago

March 6, 2026

Press Room

Louisiana delegation responds with mixed reaction to leadership change at DHS

WASHINGTON (WAFB) — President Donald Trump has removed Kristi Noem as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security and nominated Sen. Markwayne Mullin to replace her. Noem will take on the role of Special Envoy for the Shield of the Americas. Members of Louisiana’s congressional delegation responded to the change in leadership.

FILE – Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem appears for an oversight hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, at the Capitol in Washington, March 3, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)(J. Scott Applewhite | AP)

FILE - Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla. speaks during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing,... — FILE – Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla. speaks during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, Jan. 14, 2025, on Capitol Hill in Washington.(Jacquelyn Martin | AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)

Kennedy clash preceded removal

Noem led DHS since the beginning of Trump’s second term. One of the most noted controversies of her tenure was the department’s spending of $220 million on television ads across the country, which drew scrutiny from Sen. John Kennedy during a committee hearing.

“Did the President know you were going to do this?” Kennedy asked during the hearing.

“Yes,” Noem replied.

Kennedy said the spending and other issues had weighed on him.

“You just add all of this up and the other turmoil and it’s been stuck in my craw,” Kennedy said. “I want to secure the border and I want to enforce our immigration laws, but I’m tired of trying to explain behavior that is inexplicable to me.”