I normally try to avoid local politics in this column, but it is now the dead heat of summer, the elections are only a few months away, and an old (kind of) soul like me can’t stay away from the topic.

All elected offices from governor to council will be up for grabs in October, and it is sure to be an exciting race to the finish line. As members of the community, it is our duty to stay informed and vote for the most qualified person for the job.

The local race that has been garnering the most headlines is the St. John Parish sheriff’s race with the current sheriff, Wayne Jones, being challenged by local businessman Aaron Lyons and former Sheriff’s Department public information officer Mike Tregre.

In Louisiana, the incumbent sheriff usually has the upper hand in re-election; however, popular opinion is this will be the race to watch because there are too many variables to make it a sure bet for anyone. Nevertheless, with a new crime incident hitting the front page every other day, I am sure that moms and dads throughout the parish will be carefully weighing their decisions.

The other race that has people talking is the race for parish president. Current Parish President Natalie Robottom was elected in a special election last year. In that race, Mrs. Robottom garnered more votes than a sitting councilman-at-large, the school board president and yours truly.

So far, the race seems relatively quiet compared to the already heated sheriff’s race. However, word on the street is a current councilman is close to putting his hat in the ring and another name or two are being thrown around as possible opponents to Robottom. Despite the race getting off to a late start, it is too early to say Robottom has an easy road ahead of her because in the days of Twitter, Facebook and great websites, a relatively unknown candidate can rise to the top rather quickly.

The other offices on the ballot in the parish aren’t even on the radar. Assessor Whitney Joseph and Clerk of Court Eliana Defranscech might not have an opponent, and few have announced their candidacy for council despite the fact that the election is only 140 days away. Even if the council races fail to kick up any dust, both the sheriff and parish president elections look to be filled with surprises.

I am looking forward to an exciting election and will definitely be taking part in the festivities.

The last bite…

Last weekend we celebrated Courtney’s birthday with a weekend in New Orleans. In addition to seeing “Shrek” and going to the Oyster Festival, we had breakfast at Surrey’s on Magazine. It was there that Courtney and I ate the best BLT we’ve ever tasted. It was served on a homemade “everything” bagel and stuffed with thick bacon (from a local butcher), fresh romaine lettuce, Creole tomato slices and dripping with light mayo. You could taste South Louisiana in every bite. I give Surrey’s BLT 5 (out of 5) crumbs!

Buddy Boe, a resident of Garyville, owns a public relations and program management company and is well known on the local political (and food) scenes. His column appears Wednesdays in L’Observateur.