St. Tammany News

Two Louisiana House members are headed to a runoff for the Republican nomination for the 1st Congressional District seat vacated by Gov. Bobby Jindal.

Unofficial returns show that Rep. Steve Scalise received 16,799 votes, or 48 percent, and Rep. Tim Burns of Mandeville received 9,631 votes, or 28 percent. The runoff election will by held April 5, with the general election set for May 3. The winner of the runoff will face Democrat Gilda Reed, who received 11,721 or 70 percent of the votes in Saturday's closed primary election, and Anthony "Tony" Gentile, an Independent, in May.

Voters in St. Tammany Parish also overwhelmingly approved a bond renewal for the School Board and a permanent renewal of a 1/4-cent tax for the Sheriff's Office in yesterday's election.

In St. Tammany Parish, Burns was the top vote getter on the Republican side with 5,989 votes or 37 percent. Ben Morris receivec 5,412 votes or 33 percent; Steve Scalise, 4,356 votes 27 percent; and David Simpson, 619 votes or 4 percent.

On the Democratic side, Reed received 4,701 votes, or 72 percent in St. Tammany, and Vinny Mendoza received 1,805 votes, or 28 percent.

The closed primary meant only Republican registered voters could vote for Republican candidates, and only registered Democrats could vote for the Democratic candidates.

The Congressional district includes St. Tammany, Tangipahoa, Washington and swaths of Jefferson, Orleans and St. Charles parishes.

Overall, Mendoza received 5,083 votes or 30 percent, on the Democratic side, while on the Republican side Morris got 7,388 votes, or 21 percent, and Simpson got 932 votes, or 3 percent.

In the tax elections, voters in St. Tammany overwhelmingly approved a $167 million bond renewal for the School Board that will continue current millage and provide for two new schools, renovations for older schools, increased security and updating the technological infrastructure.

The vote results are 16,719, or 68 percent, yes, and 7,702, or 32 percent, no.

The sheriff's tax funds full time pay for roughly 170 deputies and was first approved by voters in 1991 and renewed in 2001.

It accounts for less than 25 percent, or roughly $9.8 million, of the Sheriff's Office's $47 million yearly budget, St. Tammany Parish Sheriff Jack Strain said. The vote was 17,199, or 70 percent, yes, and 3,729 votes, or 30 percent, no.