Thank You!
Hello friends, family and fellow citizens,
As many of you know, we had a big election in Louisiana Saturday. Congratulations to everyone who ran, especially those who emerged victorious in their races or made it to runoff elections, which will take place on November 16. A big shout-out to Eddie Rispone, a businessman who's devoted many years of his life to this state and to the Republican Party. He'll be going to a runoff with Governor Edwards on the 16th. We need to give our full support to him so that we can get a fresh new face and, most importantly, a political outsider who can use his experience from the private sector to help dig out state out of the deep hole it's fallen into thanks to the lobbyists, into the governor's chair.
Congratulations as well to Covington Councilman Patrick McMath and Representative Reid Falconer on making the runoff in the District 11 State Senate race. Y'all, these are two awesome people who have worked so hard on their campaigns because they really care about serving us in the legislature. I've had the privilege of meeting them both and their wives in person and I can say that, even though the race turned ugly and mud was thrown, they're both great folks at heart and whoever wins this race will do a fantastic job representing us in the Senate. I've considered both of their records and have decided to hold off on an endorsement for a few days. I want to talk with both of them first and we're working on setting up meetings right now. I wanted to wait a little while for everyone to cool off and to think about things. I don't want to sell out my supporters by endorsing someone too quickly or selling out to a politician without thinking about things first. I want to support whoever I think will be the best voice for us in the Senate. I take this endorsement very seriously and there are many issues I want to consider first.
On the one hand, McMath doesn't have much of a record because he's only been in politics since 2017, so it's not fair to compare his record to Falconer's. I think McMath would be a great voice for small businesses because he's more of an outsider and a fresh face in politics. However, Falconer has a lot more experience and could be more crafty about getting good legislation passed, should he support it. I am concerned about some of Falconer's votes in the State House of Representatives, but it's really not fair to hold those against him because McMath hasn't had four years in politics to build up a record like Falconer has. The bottom line is, both of these candidates are great people and have contributed a lot to our state despite their flaws, and I'll feel bad about not supporting whichever one I ultimately don't endorse, so I'm thinking about this carefully. I'll give y'all an update in a few days after I talk with both of them.
Anyway, I want to sincerely, from the bottom of my heart, thank everyone who supported our campaign. I am disappointed that we didn't win. I didn't run to make a statement or get attention. I ran to win and push for the policies I support in the legislature, like a ban on lobbying, budget reform that eliminated state sales and income taxes, and healthcare reform that eliminated Obamacare's insurance regulations (which are the main reason premiums and deductibles are going up for so many hard-working families). However, your votes really mean so much to me. I'm humbled that you clicked my name in the ballot box and trusted me to be your Senator. Honestly, I don't even know if I deserve all of you, but I really appreciate it and love you all.
Where do we go from here? My campaign was all about giving power back to the people. That's why I didn't take any money from the lobbyists, PACs and rich donors. I wanted to get rid of the lobbyists that are corrupting our government. Frankly, we're fighting an uphill battle because we don't have the money on our side, and that means we'll always be the underdog. I'm going to continue to advocate for these issues. Maybe I'll start a podcast to discuss the news and give my honest, unfiltered opinions on the issues facing our state and nation. We'll see where things go in the future. For this week, let's just relax and take a breather. Spend time with our families and enjoy the freedoms we're given in this great but deeply flawed system in which we live.
I want to sincerely thank two people who have spent a ton of their free time canvassing for me - Aidan Dedeaux and John Beckham. I went to high school with them and they've been great, supportive friends who believed in our cause and devoted their free time to trying to convince voters to support me. Aidan also spent his own hard-earned money buying cards and signs to promote the campaign. That means so much to me. I honestly don't know how to thank him but I wanted to publicly share his name so y'all know what a good human being both he and John are. If you see them around, be sure to tell them thank you and congratulations on what they accomplished - getting 5,000+ people to support a grassroots campaign that had absolutely no money for TV or radio ads, yard signs, etc. That's truly awesome!
I also want to thank my best friend in the whole wide world, Jakiaya Norman. She's been so supportive of me throughout this whole thing and made a pumpkin for me the night of the election to comfort me. I love her and wish her the best in her nursing program. I'm so thankful to have her to text every day. We tell each other good morning and good night every single day and that's truly the only way I've been able to survive many of the emotional hurdles I've faced over the past two years. Love you from the bottom of my heart, Kiaya!
Anyway, I've got plenty of work to do on my teaching license for now. Both the McMath and Falconer campaigns have nicely contacted me about endorsements and I'm going to respond to them some time tonight. We'll figure something out. I might ask my supporters who they think I should endorse. Enjoy your evening! God (or Allah, or whoever you believe in) bless you all!
Love and warmest regards,
Daniel Ducote
As many of you know, we had a big election in Louisiana Saturday. Congratulations to everyone who ran, especially those who emerged victorious in their races or made it to runoff elections, which will take place on November 16. A big shout-out to Eddie Rispone, a businessman who's devoted many years of his life to this state and to the Republican Party. He'll be going to a runoff with Governor Edwards on the 16th. We need to give our full support to him so that we can get a fresh new face and, most importantly, a political outsider who can use his experience from the private sector to help dig out state out of the deep hole it's fallen into thanks to the lobbyists, into the governor's chair.
Congratulations as well to Covington Councilman Patrick McMath and Representative Reid Falconer on making the runoff in the District 11 State Senate race. Y'all, these are two awesome people who have worked so hard on their campaigns because they really care about serving us in the legislature. I've had the privilege of meeting them both and their wives in person and I can say that, even though the race turned ugly and mud was thrown, they're both great folks at heart and whoever wins this race will do a fantastic job representing us in the Senate. I've considered both of their records and have decided to hold off on an endorsement for a few days. I want to talk with both of them first and we're working on setting up meetings right now. I wanted to wait a little while for everyone to cool off and to think about things. I don't want to sell out my supporters by endorsing someone too quickly or selling out to a politician without thinking about things first. I want to support whoever I think will be the best voice for us in the Senate. I take this endorsement very seriously and there are many issues I want to consider first.
On the one hand, McMath doesn't have much of a record because he's only been in politics since 2017, so it's not fair to compare his record to Falconer's. I think McMath would be a great voice for small businesses because he's more of an outsider and a fresh face in politics. However, Falconer has a lot more experience and could be more crafty about getting good legislation passed, should he support it. I am concerned about some of Falconer's votes in the State House of Representatives, but it's really not fair to hold those against him because McMath hasn't had four years in politics to build up a record like Falconer has. The bottom line is, both of these candidates are great people and have contributed a lot to our state despite their flaws, and I'll feel bad about not supporting whichever one I ultimately don't endorse, so I'm thinking about this carefully. I'll give y'all an update in a few days after I talk with both of them.
Anyway, I want to sincerely, from the bottom of my heart, thank everyone who supported our campaign. I am disappointed that we didn't win. I didn't run to make a statement or get attention. I ran to win and push for the policies I support in the legislature, like a ban on lobbying, budget reform that eliminated state sales and income taxes, and healthcare reform that eliminated Obamacare's insurance regulations (which are the main reason premiums and deductibles are going up for so many hard-working families). However, your votes really mean so much to me. I'm humbled that you clicked my name in the ballot box and trusted me to be your Senator. Honestly, I don't even know if I deserve all of you, but I really appreciate it and love you all.
Where do we go from here? My campaign was all about giving power back to the people. That's why I didn't take any money from the lobbyists, PACs and rich donors. I wanted to get rid of the lobbyists that are corrupting our government. Frankly, we're fighting an uphill battle because we don't have the money on our side, and that means we'll always be the underdog. I'm going to continue to advocate for these issues. Maybe I'll start a podcast to discuss the news and give my honest, unfiltered opinions on the issues facing our state and nation. We'll see where things go in the future. For this week, let's just relax and take a breather. Spend time with our families and enjoy the freedoms we're given in this great but deeply flawed system in which we live.
I want to sincerely thank two people who have spent a ton of their free time canvassing for me - Aidan Dedeaux and John Beckham. I went to high school with them and they've been great, supportive friends who believed in our cause and devoted their free time to trying to convince voters to support me. Aidan also spent his own hard-earned money buying cards and signs to promote the campaign. That means so much to me. I honestly don't know how to thank him but I wanted to publicly share his name so y'all know what a good human being both he and John are. If you see them around, be sure to tell them thank you and congratulations on what they accomplished - getting 5,000+ people to support a grassroots campaign that had absolutely no money for TV or radio ads, yard signs, etc. That's truly awesome!
I also want to thank my best friend in the whole wide world, Jakiaya Norman. She's been so supportive of me throughout this whole thing and made a pumpkin for me the night of the election to comfort me. I love her and wish her the best in her nursing program. I'm so thankful to have her to text every day. We tell each other good morning and good night every single day and that's truly the only way I've been able to survive many of the emotional hurdles I've faced over the past two years. Love you from the bottom of my heart, Kiaya!
Anyway, I've got plenty of work to do on my teaching license for now. Both the McMath and Falconer campaigns have nicely contacted me about endorsements and I'm going to respond to them some time tonight. We'll figure something out. I might ask my supporters who they think I should endorse. Enjoy your evening! God (or Allah, or whoever you believe in) bless you all!
Love and warmest regards,
Daniel Ducote
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