Louisiana's 3rd congressional district is a
United States congressional district in the
U.S. state of
Louisiana
Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...
. The district covers the southwestern and south central portion of the state, ranging from the
Texas
Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
border to the Atchafalaya River.
The district is currently represented by
Republican Clay Higgins, a former sheriff's deputy from
Port Barre known for his controversial
Crime Stoppers videos. He was first elected to the
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...
in the December 10, 2016 runoff against public service commissioner
Scott Angelle to replace
Charles Boustany.
History
Louisiana gained its
2nd and 3rd congressional districts in 1823 as part of the
18th United States Congress. Since at least the 1870s, the district has been strongly influenced by southern Louisiana's
Acadian
The Acadians (; , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Today, most descendants of Acadians live in either the Northern American region of Acadia, ...
culture.
Although the 3rd congressional district had been Democratic through much of its history, it is the sole district in Louisiana to have been represented by ''three'' parties during the 20th century, in that
Whitmell P. Martin represented the district as a
"Bull Moose" Progressive from 1915 to 1919, when he switched to the Democratic Party. Since the turn of the 20th century, it had dominated Louisiana as a one-party state after the legislature passed a new constitution that effectively
disenfranchised African Americans through the 1960s. Martin remained in office as a Democrat until his death in 1929.
The district became more competitive for the Republicans later in the 20th century, when conservative whites shifted into the Republican Party after passage of civil rights legislation by Congress. In 1966, Hall Lyons of
Lafayette, polled 40 percent of the vote as a Republican candidate against veteran Democratic incumbent
Edwin E. Willis. In 1972, the district elected
David C. Treen as the first Republican U.S. representative from Louisiana since 1891.
The state legislature redistricted in the 1980s, pushing the district out of the fast-growing suburbs of
Metairie and the city of
Kenner, to help keep the seat in the hands of Treen's Democratic successor,
Billy Tauzin. Tauzin eventually switched to the Republican Party in 1995, making the 3rd congressional district unique in 20th-century Louisiana politics as the sole district to have ''two'' representatives who switched parties (Martin, who switched from the Progressives to the Democrats in 1918, and Tauzin, who switched from the Democrats to the Republicans in 1995). As a Republican, Tauzin continued to serve until retiring from Congress in 2005.
Democrat Charlie Melançon won the seat in 2004 (seated in 2005), was reelected in 2006, and was unopposed in 2008.
For most of the time from 1823 to 2013, the district contained large portions of southeastern and south central
Louisiana
Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...
, including the
River Parishes and East
Acadiana
Acadiana (; French language, French and Cajun French language, Louisiana French: ''L'Acadiane'' or ''Acadiane''), also known as Cajun Country (Cajun French language, Louisiana French: ''Pays des Cadiens''), is the official name given to the ...
, In its final configuration, it included many exurban and rural areas near
New Orleans
New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...
,
Baton Rouge
Baton Rouge ( ; , ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It had a population of 227,470 at the 2020 United States census, making it List of municipalities in Louisiana, Louisiana's second-m ...
and
Lafayette. It contained the cities of
Chalmette,
Gonzales,
Houma,
Thibodaux,
Morgan City, and
New Iberia
New Iberia (; ) is the largest city in and the parish seat of Iberia Parish, Louisiana, Iberia Parish in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The city of New Iberia is located approximately southeast of Lafayette, Louisiana, Lafayette, and forms part of ...
.
However, when Louisiana lost a district after the 2010 census, the old 3rd was dismantled. The new 3rd included most of southwestern Louisiana, including Lafayette and
Lake Charles. Most of this territory had been the
7th district before the 2010 census. The old 3rd's last congressman, freshman Republican
Jeff Landry
Jeffrey Martin Landry ( ; born December 23, 1970) is an American politician and attorney who has served as the 57th governor of Louisiana since 2024. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the 45th attorney general of Louisiana from 201 ...
, had his home in New Iberia, along with much of the western portion of his district, drawn into the new 3rd. He opted to challenge the 7th district's four-term incumbent, fellow Republican
Charles Boustany, in the GOP primary. However, Landry could not overcome the fact that he was running in a district in which more than 60 percent of his constituents were new to him. He lost to Boustany in the primary, ending his brief congressional career. The new 3rd, like both the old 3rd and 7th, has a rich
Cajun
The Cajuns (; French: ''les Cadjins'' or ''les Cadiens'' ), also known as Louisiana ''Acadians'' (French: ''les Acadiens''), are a Louisiana French ethnicity mainly found in the US state of Louisiana and surrounding Gulf Coast states.
Whi ...
culture.
Parishes and communities
For the
119th and successive Congresses (based on the districts drawn following a 2023 court order), the district contains all or portions of the following parishes and communities.
Acadia Parish (13)
: All 13 communities
Calcasieu Parish (8)
:
Carlyss (part; also
4th),
Hayes,
Iowa
Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...
,
Lake Charles (part; also
4th),
Moss Bluff (part; also
4th),
Prien (part; also
4th),
Sulphur (part; also
4th),
Westlake
Cameron Parish (2)
:
Cameron,
Hackberry
Iberia Parish (5)
: All five communities
Jefferson Davis Parish (7)
: All seven communities
St. Martin Parish (9)
: All nine communities
St. Mary Parish (12)
: All 12 communities
Lafayette Parish (7)
:
Broussard (shared with St. Martin Parish),
Duson (shared with Acadia Parish),
Lafayette (part; also
6th),
Milton,
Ossun,
Scott (part; also
6th),
Youngsville
Lafourche Parish (9)
:
Bayou Country Club,
Chackbay,
Choctaw
The Choctaw ( ) people are one of the Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States, originally based in what is now Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. The Choctaw language is a Western Muskogean language. Today, Choct ...
,
Des Allemands (part; also
2nd; shared with
St. Charles Parish),
Kraemer,
Lafourche Crossing,
Raceland (part; also
1st),
Thibodaux (part; also
2nd)
Terrebonne Parish (10)
: All ten communities
Vermilion Parish (7)
: All seven communities
Recent election results from statewide races
List of members representing the district
Recent election results
2002
2004
2006
2008
2010
2012
2014
2016
2018
2020
2022
2024
See also
*
Louisiana's congressional districts
*
List of United States congressional districts
Congressional districts in the United States are electoral divisions for the purpose of electing members of the United States House of Representatives. The number of voting seats within the House of Representatives is currently set at 435, wi ...
References
Sources
*
*
Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present bioguide.congress.gov; accessed November 18, 2016.
External links
Rep. Clay Higgins's official House of Representatives website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Louisiana's 3rd Congressional District
03
Acadia Parish, Louisiana
Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana
Cameron Parish, Louisiana
Iberia Parish, Louisiana
Jefferson Davis Parish, Louisiana
Lafayette Parish, Louisiana
St. Martin Parish, Louisiana
St. Mary Parish, Louisiana
Vermilion Parish, Louisiana
1823 establishments in Louisiana
Constituencies established in 1823