Raymond "La La" Lalonde

Infobox_Governor
name= Raymond "La La" Lalonde


caption= Raymond "La La" Lalonde
office= Louisiana State Representative, District 39
term_start= 1980
term_end=1996
successor= Clara Baudoin
birth_date= birth date and age|1940|10|22
birth_place= Arnaudville, Louisiana
spouse=Evelyn Lalonde
party= Republican
religion=Roman Catholic
footnotes=

Raymond "La La" Lalonde (born October 22, 1940) is a former Democratic member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from Carencro in Lafayette Parish. He formerly resided in the town of Sunset in St. Landry Parish. He served in the Louisiana House from 1980-1996. He was defeated for reelection in 1995 by fellow Democrat Clara Baudoin. Lalonde then ran for Lafayette City-Parish Council in 2000.

After that defeat, he switched affiliation to the Republican Party. He was defeated again in the November 17, 2007 general election for his former legislative seat by the Democrat Bobby G. Badon (born 1951), a small businessman and a former member of the Carencro City Council. Badon polled 3,914 (52 percent) to Lalonde's 3,662 (48 percent) in a low-turnout general election. Badon said that crossover Republican voters helped to secure his Democratic victory and that he is committed to ending corrupt practices in Louisiana state government: "I have not sold my vote to any special interest group. When I get to Baton Rouge, I don't owe anyone any favors," he told the "Lafayette Daily Advertiser". Incumbent Clara Baudoin was term-limited and hence ineligible to seek a fourth term. [http://www400.sos.louisiana.gov:8090/cgibin/?rqstyp=elcms3&rqsdta=111707; http://www.theadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071118/NEWS01/711180338/1002/NEWS01] In the October 20 jungle primary Lalonde had led Badon, 4,352 (30 percent) to 4,028 (27 percent). Two other primary candidates, both Democrats, held a combined and critical 43 percent of the vote. [ [http://www400.sos.louisiana.gov:8090/cgibin/?rqstyp=elcms3&rqsdta=102007 Louisiana Secretary of State-Multi-Parish Elections Inquiry ] ]

Early years and education

Lalonde was born and raised on a farm in a rural area near Arnaudville. Following his graduation from Leonville High School, he served four years in the United States Air Force as a technician on B-52s and KC-135s. [ “Former legislator to run for city council " “The Advocate (Baton Rouge, Louisiana)", January 10, 2000.] Lalonde received a bachelor of science degree from the University of Texas-Arlington with a degree in mathematics, minor in physics, and a second equivalent degree in foreign language. He also holds a master of science in industrial technology from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge.

Lalonde worked for Boeing Airplane Company and Texas Instruments for a total of eight years. He then returned to Louisiana in 1971 and spent three years teaching mathematics, physics, and chemistry at Sunset High School before he transferred to T.H. Harris Technical College, where he taught Industrial Electronics and then advanced to Director in 1991 and served in that role until his retirement in 2003.

Political actions and positions

Lalonde was first elected to House District 39 in 1979. He was reelected three times but was defeated in 1995.

Gambling

Lalonde was a strong supporter of the legalization of gambling in Louisiana working along with Governor Edwin Washington Edwards. In 1990, he sponsored the measure that created a lottery on voter approval. In 1991, he cosponsored the bill that legalized fifteen riverboat casinos throughout Louisiana. Lalonde also chaired the criminal justice committee, which regulates gambling issues.cite book
last= Bridges
first= Tyler
authorlink= Tyler Bridges
title= The Rise and Fall of Gambling in Louisiana and the Fate of Governor Edwin Edwards
publisher= Farrar, Straus and Giroux
isbn= 0374108307
pages= 61| ] The following year, Lalonde sponsored the New Orleans land-based casino bill. Lalonde supported gambling as a method of economic development in Louisiana. He stated, speaking of a land-based casino in New Orleans, “This is one important step to help New Orleans be self-supporting and pull themselves up by the bootstraps. I don’t know how you feel about taxes, but I can vote for this rather than taxes.” “Gaming aids campaigns; Gambling industry boosts legislators' election funds" “The Advocate (Baton Rouge, Louisiana)", March 27, 1994.]

He also said gambling and other forms of entertainment were going to become a major economic force in the United States as the baby boomer generation approaches retirement age. "Anytime you see a population getting older, you see more money available for entertainment - when you're twenty-five years old and struggling, you generally don't have a lot of money and you have kids to raise and money to put away for college and that kind of stuff.” [ “Gambling has jobs but won't be oil boom" “The Advocate (Baton Rouge, Louisiana)", January 30, 1994.]

In 1993, Lalonde received more than 60 percent of his 1993 campaign contributions from gambling interests - $ 21,350 out of $ 34,150 he raised the previous year to prepare for his 1995 re-election bid. Two months before election day, in August 1995, the FBI released affidavits regarding a federal probe involving the gambling industry in Louisiana. These affidavits stated one truck stop owner was heard telling another that Lalonde wanted to avoid criticism for accepting campaign contributions from truck stop owners in support of video poker machines by disguising their campaign contributions in small amounts of $250 or $500 and in the names of their children or cousins.

Cockfighting

Lalonde was a strong supporter of Louisiana cockfighting. In response to assertions by opponents that it is a cruel activity, Lalonde said, "Boxing is more inhumane than cockfighting. Birds used in fights are naturally aggressive. Even the use of razors on the birds' legs for the fights is humane. It shortens the fights, which can otherwise take hours and become boring for spectators." [ “Cruelty Bill to Protect Most Birds" “Times-Picayune (New Orleans, La) ", April 22, 1993.]

Minority Set Asides

In 1988, Lalonde introduced his bill to allow Cajuns to qualify for minority-set aside contracts awarded by the state. Lalonde proposed this bill to enhance the status of the French Acadian people. The bill passed the state house by a vote of 74 to 22. [ “Bon Temps Minority” “Time Magazine”, June 13, 1988]

Political future

Lalonde announced in January 2007 that he will be a candidate for his former Louisiana House seat. Louisiana voters instituted term limits in 1996, limiting lawmakers to three consecutive four-year terms in one chamber. Lalonde voted against the measure in 1995. [ “House OKs term-limits bill" “The Advocate", May 9, 1995.] Since Lalonde was voted out of office in 1995, the term limit law does not apply to him.

In the current race, his opponents include businessman Tommy Angelle, Carencro City Council member Bobby Badon, and architect Stephen Ortego. Lalonde stated on his chances, "It looks like I've been in purgatory long enough and paid for my sins." [ “ [cite news
author = John Maginnis
title = “Lala” Making Comeback
publisher = Louisiana Political Fax
date= 2007-04-27]

Family

Lalonde is married to the former Evelyn Cathey of Austin, Texas. They have four children (Julie, Cindy, Joey, and Marcel) and eight grandchildren, one of which is Patrick Falterman (b. 1990), a prominent Texas runner of marathons and triathlons. [http://www.google.com/search?q=patrick+falterman&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=com.google:en-US:official&client=firefox-a]

References

External links

* [http://www.raymondlalonde.com/ ] Official Campaign Website