John A. Alario, Jr. is an American politician from
Louisiana
Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...
who represented the
8th district in the
Louisiana State Senate
The Louisiana State Senate (french: Sénat de Louisiane) is the upper house of the state legislature of Louisiana. All senators serve four-year terms and are assigned to multiple committees.
Composition
The Louisiana State Senate is compose ...
from 2008 until 2020. Currently a
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 ...
, Alario previously represented District 83 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 ...
as a
Democrat
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
between 1971 and 2007.
Alario was term-limited from the Senate in
2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
, and chose not to seek another office.
Alario was the
President of the Louisiana State Senate
The President of the Louisiana State Senate is the highest-ranking member of the Louisiana State Senate. The president convenes the session and calls members to order, and can designate another state senator as the presiding officer.
The Louisia ...
, serving in that role between 2012 and 2020; he is also a former two-term
Speaker of the Louisiana House of Representatives. He is the first politician in Louisiana history to hold both roles for two terms each, as well as the longest-serving legislator in state history.
Early career
A graduate of
West Jefferson High School and
Southeastern Louisiana University
Southeastern Louisiana University (Southeastern) is a public university in Hammond, Louisiana. It was founded in 1925 by Linus A. Sims as Hammond Junior College. Sims succeeded in getting the campus moved to north Hammond in 1928, when it becam ...
, Alario worked as a teacher and accountant prior to entering politics. He has been the owner of John A. Alario, Jr. Tax Income Service since 1972.
Electoral history
Louisiana House of Representatives
Alario was first elected as a
Democrat
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
to 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 ...
in 1971, representing the 83rd district in suburban
Jefferson Parish Jefferson may refer to:
Names
* Jefferson (surname)
* Jefferson (given name)
People
* Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), third president of the United States
* Jefferson (footballer, born 1970), full name Jefferson Tomaz de Souza, Brazilian foot ...
.
Speaker of the House
In 1984, Alario was chosen to be
Speaker of the Louisiana House of Representatives under
Governor
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
Edwin Edwards
Edwin Washington Edwards (August 7, 1927 – July 12, 2021) was an American politician and member of the Democratic Party who served as the U.S. representative for from 1965 to 1972 and as the 50th governor of Louisiana for four terms (1972– ...
. He lost that title under Governor
Buddy Roemer
Charles Elson "Buddy" Roemer III (October 4, 1943 – May 17, 2021) was an American politician, investor, and banker who served as the 52nd Governor of Louisiana from 1988 to 1992, and as a member of the United States House of Representatives fr ...
in 1988, but won it back in 1992 to serve another 4-year term.
Louisiana State Senate
Alario was elected in
2007
File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...
to the
6th district in the
Louisiana State Senate
The Louisiana State Senate (french: Sénat de Louisiane) is the upper house of the state legislature of Louisiana. All senators serve four-year terms and are assigned to multiple committees.
Composition
The Louisiana State Senate is compose ...
, defeating Democratic opponent John Roberts 63-37%. In 2010, Alario switched to the
Republican Party due to the national direction of the Democratic Party and the increasingly-Republican politics of Louisiana.
Alario was re-elected unopposed in
2011
File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...
and
2015
File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...
. He was term-limited in
2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
. Though there was speculation that he would run for his former House of Representatives seat, Alario declined and chose to retire from politics.
Senate President
Alario was chosen as
President of the Louisiana State Senate
The President of the Louisiana State Senate is the highest-ranking member of the Louisiana State Senate. The president convenes the session and calls members to order, and can designate another state senator as the presiding officer.
The Louisia ...
under Governor
Bobby Jindal
Piyush "Bobby" Jindal (born June 10, 1971) is an American politician who served as the 55th Governor of Louisiana from 2008 to 2016. The only living former Louisiana governor, Jindal also served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives a ...
in 2011, and served a second term under Governor
John Bel Edwards
John Bel Edwards (born September 16, 1966) is an American politician and attorney serving as the 56th governor of Louisiana since 2016. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the Democratic leader of the Louisiana House of ...
. He is the second Republican Senate President since
Reconstruction
Reconstruction may refer to:
Politics, history, and sociology
*Reconstruction (law), the transfer of a company's (or several companies') business to a new company
*'' Perestroika'' (Russian for "reconstruction"), a late 20th century Soviet Unio ...
.
Personal life
Alario's wife, Alba "Ree" Williamson Alario, died in 2006. The couple had four children – Jan Marie, John, Christopher, and Kevin – and seven grandchildren.
References
External links
*
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Alario, John
1943 births
20th-century American politicians
21st-century American politicians
Living people
Louisiana Democrats
Louisiana Republicans
Louisiana state senators
Members of the Louisiana House of Representatives
People from Westwego, Louisiana
Southeastern Louisiana University alumni
Speakers of the Louisiana House of Representatives