Editorial: How should we end Louisiana’s tired tradition of election shenanigans?

When Aimee Boyd Robinson saw a name she didn’t recognize on the ballot for Lafayette mayor-president, she knew something was up.

“My red flags just kept going off,” is how she put it.

The candidate, Priscilla Gonzalez, showed up on the last day of qualifying initially without a Louisiana driver’s license, saying she had moved to Lafayette from Corpus Christi a year ago and intended to run as the sole Democratic candidate.

Robinson, who is active in local Democratic Party politics, challenged Gonzalez’ qualifications, and this week a judge removed Gonzalez from the ballot.

That case underscores why voters need to be vigilant. Whether Gonzalez sought to run as a lark or a spoiler, it’s clear she was not a serious candidate.

Robinson says too many people just accept electoral shenanigans as “the way Louisiana is.” She disagrees, saying, “It doesn’t have to be that way.”

We couldn’t agree more.

Many candidates faced challenges to their qualifications this election season. Most dealt with domicile requirements or the rule that candidates must have filed state and federal tax returns for at least five years.

There are good reasons for errant candidates to be disqualified, but let’s not underestimate the damage that frivolous candidacies create.

Disqualifications in several parishes left voters with no challengers to incumbent state legislators and, in St. John the Baptist Parish, to the incumbent parish president. Would those incumbents have drawn no opponents anyway? We’ll never know.

It’s even worse when unqualified candidates go unchallenged. They drain votes from qualified candidates by giving voters false choices.

One candidate for a state House seat in the River Parishes admitted he doesn’t live in the district and basically dared his opponents to challenge his candidacy. After several did, candidate Albert “Ali” Burl III convinced the trial judge the state constitution allows him to run. Burl’s case is subject to appeal, but it’s noteworthy that he refused to offer any explanation before he was hauled into court.

Perhaps Louisiana should do more to keep unqualified candidates off the ballot. Veteran political observer Robert Mann, a mass communications professor at LSU, says some states require candidates to obtain a set number of petition signatures to get on the ballot. That ensures some authentic level of support. Current state law allows candidates to file a petition, but most just pay a minimal filing fee.

That’s why vigilant citizens like Aimee Boyd Robinson should be applauded — and emulated. She followed the process to make sure voters in Lafayette had real choices. The attorney who argued her case, Gary McGoffin, says Robinson deserves a “big pat on the back and thanks from everyone.”

We agree, and we encourage others to follow her example in future elections. We also hope lawmakers consider tightening Louisiana’s qualifying requirements.