Louisiana's 3rd Congressional District
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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