“Andy” Anders (D)
Term limited in 2019
District Map

2002 Senate Race (Runoff)
Mary Landrieu (D) 6,046 (63%)
Suzy Terrell (R) 3,548 (37%)

2003 Governors Race (Runoff)
Kathleen Blanco (D) 9,692 (70%)
“Bobby” Jindal (R) 4,226 (30%)

2004 Presidential Race
George W. Bush (R) 7,533 (48%)
John Kerry (D) 7,840 (50%)
Others 208 (2%)

2004 Senate Race
David Vitter (R) 5,964 (41%)
Chris John (D) 4,892 (34%)
Others 3,764 (25%)

2006 Secretary of State Race
Jay Dardenne (R) 1,178 (15%)
Francis Heitmeier (D) 2,892 (37%)
Mike Francis (R) 2,636 (34%)
Mary Chehardy (R) 458 (6%)
Others 608 (8%)

2007 Governors Race
“Bobby” Jindal (R) 4,769 (39%)
Walter Boasso (D) 2,821 (23%)
John Georges (I) 1,195 (10%)
Foster Campbell (D) 2,807 (23%)
Others 544 (5%)

2007 Agriculture Commissioner Race
“Bob” Odom (D) 6,836 (61%)
Mike Strain (R) 2,687 (24%)
Wayne Carter (R) 1,038 (9%)
Don Johnson (R) 686 (6%)

District 21 is located along the Mississippi River delta and contains all of Concordia Parish, plus the portions of Madison, Tensas, and East Carroll Parishes closest to the river. It was reconfigured in 1991 to elect an African-American, and has a solid and steady 56% African-American voter registration. Its delta parishes have been losing population for years, with East Carroll and Tensas losing over 10% of its voters since the last statewide election. Overall, the district has had a slight 2% voter population loss since 2003.

Politically, the African-American majority has made this district a reliably Democratic district in federal and state elections. Mary Landrieu and Kathleen Blanco received 63 and 70% support, respectively, and John Kerry eked out a 50-48% victory in the 2004 Presidential race. Even though the district voted for David Vitter and “Bobby” Jindal in his 2007 run for Governor, both received 41 and 39% pluralities, and would surely have lost the district in a heads up race against a Democrat.

This district has had steady representation over the years. Al Ater (currently Louisiana’s Secretary of State) represented the bulk of the district from 1984-1992. After the 1990 reapportionment, the legislature reconfigured the district to include the majority African-American parishes along the Mississippi Rivers in the hopes of an African-American being elected to this district. That did not and has not happened so far, because Bryant Hammett, who was first elected in 1991, was able to sweep Concordia Parish (which has a 65% white majority and cast over half the votes), while receiving enough votes in the Delta Parishes to win. After winning in the runoff in 1991 and 1995 against African-American candidates, he received 69% of the vote in 1999 and was unopposed in 2003. He resigned in 2006 after Governor Blanco appointed him head of Wildlife and Fisheries.

A special election was held in 2006. Concordia Parish Democrat “Andy” Anders was elected with 60% of the vote in the runoff after nearly winning outright in the primary. He was then elected to a full term with 62% of the vote against three opponents.

Republicans are not likely to win this district anytime soon. The only issue here in elections is whether an African-American Democrat can be elected to this seat. The 55% voting majority is not large enough to ensure victory, especially if a white Democrat can receive enough minority support to overcome any margins an African-American candidate can receive in the Delta parishes.