Don Trahan (R)
Term limited in 2015
District Map

2002 Senate Race (Runoff)
Mary Landrieu (D) 4,022 (33%)
Suzy Terrell (R) 8,114 (67%)

2003 Governors Race (Runoff)
Kathleen Blanco (D) 6,717 (43%)
“Bobby” Jindal (R) 8,971 (57%)

2004 Presidential Race
George W. Bush (R) 15,251 (74%)
John Kerry (D) 5,094 (25%)
Others 221 (1%)

2004 Senate Race
David Vitter (R) 11,649 (59%)
Chris John (D) 6,813 (34%)
Others 1,420 (7%)

2006 Secretary of State Race
Jay Dardenne (R) 1,383 (22%)
Francis Heitmeier (D) 994 (15%)
Mike Francis (R) 3,243 (51%)
Mary Chehardy (R) 429 (7%)
Others 320 (5%)

2007 Governors Race
“Bobby” Jindal (R) 9,222 (66%)
Walter Boasso (D) 1,811 (13%)
John Georges (I) 1,872 (13%)
Foster Campbell (D) 957 (7%)
Others 151 (1%)

2007 Agriculture Commissioner Race
“Bob” Odom (D) 3,832 (29%)
Mike Strain (R) 6,887 (51%)
Wayne Carter (R) 1,574 (12%)
Don Johnson (R) 1,116 (8%)

Thanks to Lafayette Parish’s strong growth (it was the seventh fastest growing parish in the 1980s and 1990s), it gained a state House seat after the 2001 reapportionment. District 31 is a new seat which contains portions of Lafayette and Vermillion Parishes. Its portion of Vermillion Parish roughly includes the northern fringes of that parish (centered around Maurice) bordering Lafayette Parish. The Lafayette Parish portion actually contains two areas: one “finger” stretches from the southwestern corner of the parish all the way up to the town of Scott, while another “finger” between Johnston and Verot School road stretches up to the Broadmoor area of Lafayette.

Politically, the district has a decided Republican preference thanks to the south Lafayette precincts along Johnston Street. It gave President Bush 74%, Suzy Terrell 67%, and “Bobby” Jindal 66% (in 2007). Even with Acadiana-based Democrats running in the 2003 Governor’s and 2004 Senate races, Jindal and Vitter still received 57 and 59%, respectively. Additionally, the district has a light African-American voter population of 7% and has grown 9% since 2003 – several times the statewide rate – Lafayette grew 6% and Vermillion Parish grew 17%, which suggests that there is suburban spillover from Lafayette along Johnston Street into the northern fringes of Vermillion Parish.

Within the district itself, 81% of the districts voters live in Lafayette. The area along Johnston Street tends to be the most Republican; the Scott area leans Republican, but not by as large of a margin. The Vermillion Parish precincts lean Republican, although Kathleen Blanco did receive 56% of the vote in this part of the district in 2003.

The district’s representative, Don Trahan, was elected after a multi candidate primary of three Republicans and a Democrat and a runoff against fellow Republican Charlie Buckels. In both the primary and the runoff, the Vermillion Parish precincts enabled Trahan to make the runoff and to win the 2003 runoff by 13 votes (he received 51% and 70% in the primary and runoff there)

Amazingly, he again had to fight hard to win the seat in 2007, as Independent Nancy Landry had Senator Mike Michot’s support, and managed to carry the Lafayette Parish portion with 51%. Rep. Trahan’s 55% support in the Vermillion Parish precincts saved his career, and he was re-elected by 33 votes.

Having survived two nail biters, his career depends on how reapportionment adds or subtracts voting precincts from Vermillion and/or Lafayette Parishes. Accordingly, we rate this seat as a “likely Republican hold” for the 2011 election.

There was modest damage to the area from Hurricane Rita; the resulting storm surge reached areas practically at the southern doorstep of the district. Since the storm, the district has gained over 1,000 voters, with Vermillion Parish continuing to grow faster than Lafayette Parish.