By ROBIN SHANNON

L’Observateur

LAPLACE – Saturday’s runoff election results produced a complete change in leadership across the board for legislative seats representing the River Parishes.

The four state representative seats and the two state Senate seats that serve St. John the Baptist, St. James and St. Charles parishes will have new faces when the elected are sworn into office in January.

In District 56, Destrehan attorney Greg Miller defeated former St. Charles Councilman Ganesier “Ram” Ramachandran by a vote of 62 percent to 38 percent. Miller will replace Rep. Gary Smith, who vacated the seat for a successful run for state Senate in District 19.

Miller said his large support base in the region campaigned aggressively for him and sent a positive message to voters in the region.

“People throughout the area that I have known my entire life came to bat for me,” Miller said. “They know the kind of person I am, they know my integrity and they understand what I am fighting for.”

Miller said his focus throughout the campaign has been hurricane protection for those areas left vulnerable by a lack of levees. He said he will push for movement on projects to bring levee protection to the easternmost portions of St. John as well as the west bank of St. Charles.

“That has been the number one priority of nearly all I have spoken to,” Miller said. “They also want to see aggressive education reform, which is a problem statewide. We have great school systems in this region, but we need to make sure every child has every opportunity to succeed.”

The 56th District encompasses much of St. Charles Parish except for Hahnville, Boutte, Killona and parts of Luling and St. Rose. The easternmost portions of LaPlace are also included in the district.

The new face for District 57 is LaPlace attorney Randal Gaines, who defeated St. John School Board member Russ Wise by a vote of 69 percent to 31 percent. Gaines will replace Rep. Nickie Monica, who did not seek a second term in office.

Gaines said the wide margin of victory did not surprise him. He was he top vote getter in the October primary, which he said served as motivation for the runoff campaign.

“We stayed aggressive,” Gaines said. “We got out and listened to a large number of people who were ready for a new direction.”

Gaines said the biggest concern among constituents is jobs in the region. He said he is looking forward to creating economic development that is both short term and long term.

“We want to bring business in now, but we want to make sure it can be sustainable for years to come,” Gaines said. “This region has a lot to offer, and we need to market that.”

District 57 includes the entire east bank of St. John Parish except for a small section of eastern LaPlace. It also encompasses the towns of Gramercy and Lutcher as well as a portion of the Paulina area in St. James Parish.

In District 58, Ed Price defeated Dwayne “Gully” Bailey by a vote of 58 percent to 42 percent. Bailey takes over for Rep. Elton Aubert, who ran unsuccessfully for state Senate.

Bailey said he will look to cut state expenses by redirecting emergency room visits that are non-emergencies to the proper health care centers, reducing pet projects and using some rainy day funds and tax amnesties to help balance the budget. The district includes most of the west bank and the unincorporated portions of the east bank of St. James Parish.

In the newly drawn District 81, Clay Schexnayder of Gonzales defeated Kevin Hull of Denham Springs by a vote of 64 percent to 36 percent. Schexnayder will represent Garyville, Mt. Airy and parts of Reserve in St. John Parish as well as portions of St. James, Ascension and Livingston parishes.

Schexnayder said his priorities will focus on family values, cutting state government and lowering taxes.

In the District 2 state Senate race, Baton Rouge attorney Troy Brown defeated Aubert by a vote of 53 percent to 47 percent. District 2 represents portions of eight parishes, including parts of all three River Parishes.

Brown emphasized job creation and said he intends to focus on implementing a state high school curriculum that offers more options for students looking outside the traditional college degree.

He also wants to see the state do a better job of marketing the River Parishes to the global economy.