Jacquelyn Brechtel Clarkson (born January 17, 1936)
is an American politician who served in the
Louisiana House of Representatives
The Louisiana House of Representatives (french: link=no, Chambre des Représentants de Louisiane) is the lower house in the Louisiana State Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. This chamber is composed of 105 repr ...
from 1994 to 2002, and multiple tenures on the
New Orleans City Council
The New Orleans City Council is the legislative branch of the City of New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. The current mayor-council form of city government was created in 1954, following the 1950 amendment of the state constitution that provide ...
(1990–94, 2002–06, 2007–2013). She has been
Honorary consul
A consul is an official representative of the government of one state in the territory of another, normally acting to assist and protect the citizens of the consul's own country, as well as to facilitate trade and friendship between the people ...
of
Lithuania
Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...
in New Orleans since December 2014. She is the mother of actress
Patricia Clarkson
Patricia Davies Clarkson (born December 29, 1959) is an American actress. She has starred in numerous leading and supporting roles in a variety of films ranging from independent film features to major film studio productions. Her accolades incl ...
.
Background
Clarkson's maternal grandmother, Sophie Bass, was a Jewish immigrant from
Lithuania
Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...
.
[ She is the daughter of Sophie (née Berengher) and Johnny Brechtel, a football coach. She is married to Arthur Clarkson and they have five daughters, including ]Academy Award
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
-nominated actress Patricia Clarkson
Patricia Davies Clarkson (born December 29, 1959) is an American actress. She has starred in numerous leading and supporting roles in a variety of films ranging from independent film features to major film studio productions. Her accolades incl ...
. Before entering politics she was in real estate and president of the Louisiana Realtor Association.
She represented District C on the New Orleans City Council from 1990 to 1994 and from 2002 to 2006, as well as District 102 at the Louisiana House of Representatives
The Louisiana House of Representatives (french: link=no, Chambre des Représentants de Louisiane) is the lower house in the Louisiana State Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. This chamber is composed of 105 repr ...
. The boundaries of District 102 are roughly the same as the Algiers
Algiers ( ; ar, الجزائر, al-Jazāʾir; ber, Dzayer, script=Latn; french: Alger, ) is the capital and largest city of Algeria. The city's population at the 2008 Census was 2,988,145Census 14 April 2008: Office National des Statistiques ...
neighborhood (also known as the Fifteenth Ward) in New Orleans. Those of District C include Algiers, as well as the Vieux Carré or French Quarter
The French Quarter, also known as the , is the oldest neighborhood in the city of New Orleans. After New Orleans (french: La Nouvelle-Orléans) was founded in 1718 by Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville, the city developed around the ("Old Squ ...
neighborhood.
After Hurricane Katrina
Clarkson ran for Councilmember at Large in 2006, but she lost in the general election
A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...
, often called the runoff in Louisiana, against Arnie Fielkow, another Democrat and former Executive Vice President of the National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
's New Orleans Saints
The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...
. Mayor Ray Nagin
Clarence Raymond Joseph Nagin Jr. (born June 11, 1956) is an American former politician who was the 60th Mayor of New Orleans, Louisiana, from 2002 to 2010. A Democrat, Nagin became internationally known in 2005 in the aftermath of Hurricane Ka ...
won re-election only after facing a much tougher challenge than expected before the hurricane, and half of the council members who ran again were defeated.
The resignation of Councilmember at Large Oliver Thomas
Oliver M. Thomas, Jr. (born February 10, 1957), is a Democratic politician, actor, writer, and poet from New Orleans. He served on the New Orleans City Council from 1994 to 2007. On August 13, 2007, Thomas resigned his council seat after pleadin ...
in 2007 over bribery charges enabled Clarkson to return on New Orleans City Council. She was elected to her first term as Councilmember-at-Large in a special election in November 2007, defeating Cynthia Willard-Lewis.
Clarkson in 2008 and 2009 became particularly outspoken in defending likeminded councilwoman Stacy Head
Stacy Aline Singleton Head (born June 30, 1969) is an American lawyer and former president of the New Orleans City Council.
Early life and career
Stacy Head was born in 1969 as the daughter of the former Katherine Hamberlin and Ernest Lynn Single ...
in a feud with city sanitation director Veronica White. Clarkson called for White's dismissal, but Nagin defended White.
Clarkson was re-elected as Councilmember at Large in February 2010 (again narrowly defeating Cynthia Willard-Lewis), and was named president of the council in May 2011.
Election history
Although a lifelong Democrat, Clarkson has received support from Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
organizations including the Parish Executive Committee of the Republican Party
Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party.
Republican Party may also refer to:
Africa
*Republican Party (Liberia)
* Republican Part ...
. In 2008 she broke party ranks and supported Republican challenger Anh "Joseph" Cao in his longshot but successful bid to unseat Democratic incumbent William J. Jefferson
William Jennings Jefferson (born March 14, 1947) is an American former politician from Louisiana whose career ended after his corruption scandal and conviction. He served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for nine terms from 1991 ...
from Louisiana's 2nd congressional district
Louisiana's 2nd congressional district contains nearly all of the city of New Orleans and stretches west and north to Baton Rouge. The district is currently represented by Democrat Troy Carter. With a Cook Partisan Voting Index rating of D+25, ...
seat. Likeminded fellow Democratic Councilwoman Stacy Head
Stacy Aline Singleton Head (born June 30, 1969) is an American lawyer and former president of the New Orleans City Council.
Early life and career
Stacy Head was born in 1969 as the daughter of the former Katherine Hamberlin and Ernest Lynn Single ...
found herself soon facing a recall petition. Clarkson, however, was not subjected to a recall effort; as councilwoman-at-large she represents a broader constituency, and she is more ingrained into the New Orleans political scene. In May 2009, as the New Orleans e-mail controversies
Stacy Aline Singleton Head (born June 30, 1969) is an American lawyer and former president of the New Orleans City Council.
Early life and career
Stacy Head was born in 1969 as the daughter of the former Katherine Hamberlin and Ernest Lynn Single ...
intensified, Clarkson began publishing thousands of her e-mail messages online:
::Anything we don't want the public to see, we shouldn't put in an e-mail. . . . Just let us do it responsibly so private information about our constituents doesn't get out there.[Michelle Krupa]
"Surge of N.O. e-mail may flow online soon: It's 2.5 million pages of files, attorney says"
in ''Times-Picayune'' (New Orleans), 20 May 2009, Saint Tammany Edition, pp. A1, A9 (Clarkson quoted on p. A9). See also Stacy Head
Stacy Aline Singleton Head (born June 30, 1969) is an American lawyer and former president of the New Orleans City Council.
Early life and career
Stacy Head was born in 1969 as the daughter of the former Katherine Hamberlin and Ernest Lynn Single ...
.
Footnotes
See also
* Anh "Joseph" Cao
* Arnie Fielkow
*Stacy Head
Stacy Aline Singleton Head (born June 30, 1969) is an American lawyer and former president of the New Orleans City Council.
Early life and career
Stacy Head was born in 1969 as the daughter of the former Katherine Hamberlin and Ernest Lynn Single ...
*Cynthia Hedge-Morrell
Cynthia Hedge-Morrell (born September 4, 1947) is an African-American teacher, a former school administrator, and a Democratic politician from New Orleans, Louisiana. She served on the New Orleans City Council from 2005 to 2014.
Education
Hedge- ...
*William J. Jefferson
William Jennings Jefferson (born March 14, 1947) is an American former politician from Louisiana whose career ended after his corruption scandal and conviction. He served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for nine terms from 1991 ...
*Shelley Stephenson Midura Shelley Stephenson Midura (born January 2, 1966) is a resident of New Orleans, Louisiana and a former member of the New Orleans City Council. A Democrat, she represented District A from 2006 to her retirement in 2010. She first won election when s ...
*Ray Nagin
Clarence Raymond Joseph Nagin Jr. (born June 11, 1956) is an American former politician who was the 60th Mayor of New Orleans, Louisiana, from 2002 to 2010. A Democrat, Nagin became internationally known in 2005 in the aftermath of Hurricane Ka ...
*Rosalind Peychaud
Rosalind Magee Peychaud (born 1948) is a Democratic former state representative for Louisiana House of Representatives District 91 (which she represented from 2002 to 2004). In 2009 Peychaud became deputy chief of staff for U.S. Representat ...
*Cynthia Willard-Lewis
Cynthia W. Willard-Lewis (born 1952) is an American politician in Louisiana. A Democrat from New Orleans, Louisiana, she served briefly in the Louisiana State Senate and for longer periods in the Louisiana House of Representatives and on the Ne ...
External links
* Clarkson campaign website : https://web.archive.org/web/20071022171110/http://jackieclarkson.org/ JackieClarkson.org
Oral History Interview with Jacquelyn Clarkson
fro
Oral Histories of the American South
* City of New Orleans : https://web.archive.org/web/20051108055806/http://www.cityofno.com/
* Louisiana Secretary of State : https://web.archive.org/web/20060911211304/http://www.sos.louisiana.gov/
* New Orleans ''Times-Picayune'' : http://www.nola.com/weblogs/bourbon/index.ssf?/mtlogs/nola_bstdiaries/archives/2003_05.html
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clarkson, Jackie
1936 births
20th-century American politicians
21st-century American politicians
American people of Lithuanian-Jewish descent
American real estate brokers
Jewish American state legislators in Louisiana
Living people
Democratic Party members of the Louisiana House of Representatives
New Orleans City Council members
Women city councillors in Louisiana
Women state legislators in Louisiana
21st-century American women politicians
20th-century American women politicians
21st-century American Jews