Paul Jude Hardy (born October 18, 1942) is an American
attorney
Attorney may refer to:
* Lawyer
** Attorney at law, in some jurisdictions
* Attorney, one who has power of attorney
* ''The Attorney'', a 2013 South Korean film
See also
* Attorney general, the principal legal officer of (or advisor to) a gove ...
from
Baton Rouge
Baton Rouge ( ; ) is a city in and the capital of the U.S. state of 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-sma ...
, in the
U.S. state of
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 was the first
Republican to have been elected
lieutenant governor
A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...
of the
U.S. state of
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 ...
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 Union ...
. He served in the second-ranking post 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 ...
Buddy Roemer from 1988 to 1992.
Background
Hardy was born in
Lafayette, Louisiana. In 1960, he graduated from
Cecilia High School. In 1965, he received his bachelor's degree from the
University of Louisiana at Lafayette, then the University of Southwestern Louisiana, from which his mother also graduated. While Hardy was on the USL track team, he won the Gulf States Conference
high jump
The high jump is a track and field event in which competitors must jump unaided over a horizontal bar placed at measured heights without dislodging it. In its modern, most-practiced format, a bar is placed between two standards with a crash mat f ...
competition for two consecutive years.
In 1966, Hardy received his law degree from
Loyola University College of Law in
, and at the age of twenty-three, he began practicing law in
St. Martinville
St. Martinville (french: Saint-Martin)Jack A. Reynolds. "St. Martinville" entry i"Louisiana Placenames of Romance Origin."LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses #7852. 1942. p. 480. is a city in and the parish seat of St. Martin Parish, Louisiana ...
with the firm Willis and Hardy.
State senator and secretary of state
In 1972, Hardy was elected as a Democratic state senator from
Iberia
The Iberian Peninsula (),
**
* Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica''
**
**
* french: Péninsule Ibérique
* mwl, Península Eibérica
* eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, defi ...
and
St. Martin parishes. The defunct ''Baton Rouge State Times'' named him the "Outstanding Newcomer" of the year after his first legislative session in 1972. He served alongside fellow Democrat
Carl W. Bauer
Carl Wiegmann Bauer (October 4, 1933 – June 11, 2013) was a lawyer and businessman who served as a Democrat in both houses of the Louisiana State Legislature from 1966 to 1976 and capped his career as the chief lobbyist, specifically the "Coo ...
, who represented
St. Mary
Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...
and St. Martin parishes.
In 1974, state Senator Hardy was named "Conservationist of the Year" among the elected official category by the Louisiana Wildlife Federation.
Republican lieutenant governor
Hardy switched parties and ran as a Republican in 1987 for
lieutenant governor
A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...
. First though he was for two weeks in January 1987 a gubernatorial candidate once again. After intraparty rival,
U.S. Representative
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...
Bob Livingston of suburban New Orleans, defeated Hardy by a five-to-one margin at a caucus straw poll in
Alexandria
Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...
, Hardy said that he would not be a disrupting factor in the race. He therefore endorsed Livingston and incorrectly predicted that Livingston would be elected governor that year.
["Hardy withdraws from governor's race",''Minden Press-Herald'', January 21, 1987, p. 1]
As lieutenant governor, Hardy led the way to enact legislation creating "Tax Free Shopping," which still today gives foreigners an incentive to visit Louisiana. In turn, this concept has resulted in increases in tourism-related jobs, and in 1989 alone increased tourist spending by a record $1.2 billion.
In 1985, Hardy had assisted local entrepreneurs in the production of the full-length feature film of the Cajun movie ''Belizaire the Cajun'' which was filmed in at Acadian Village in Lafayette. He was the associate producer and played a bit part in the movie. Under his leadership thereafter as lieutenant governor, the economic impact of the movie industry increased by $51 million.
In 1989,
Phi Kappa Theta
Phi Kappa Theta (), commonly known as Phi Kap, is a national social fraternity that has over 35 active chapters and colonies at universities across 21 U.S. states. The fraternity was founded on April 29, 1959, at Ohio State University in Columbus ...
national fraternal organization presented Hardy with the "Man of Achievement" award. In 1991, he was presented with "The Order of the Plimsoll," the highest award of the
World Trade Center.
Private life in Baton Rouge
Hardy is an attorney, banker, businessman, and political consultant residing in Baton Rouge with his wife Sandra "Sandi" Gatlin Hardy (also born 1943), a native of
Grant Parish
Grant Parish (french: Paroisse de Grant) is a parish located in the North Central portion of the U.S. state of Louisiana. As of the 2010 census, the population was 22,309. The parish seat is Colfax. The parish was founded in 1869 durin ...
in north Louisiana. They have two children and two granddaughters. Gregory Paul Hardy (born 1966) his wife, Dedi, and their daughter Heather Gayle Hardy reside in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where he practices law. Daughter Yvette Rachal Hardy Gross is a ULL graduate residing in Baton Rouge with her husband, Darrell Gross, along with their daughter Jessica Yvette Gross.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hardy, Paul
1942 births
Living people
Lieutenant Governors of Louisiana
Louisiana lawyers
Louisiana state senators
Louisiana Democrats
Louisiana Republicans
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns men's track and field athletes
American athlete-politicians
Loyola University New Orleans College of Law alumni
Cajun people
People from St. Martinville, Louisiana
Politicians from Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Secretaries of State of Louisiana