Louisiana Senate Race Goes to Dec. 6 Runoff

Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) and Rep. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) are headed for a runoff to see if Landrieu will keep her seat.

Landrieu got 41 percent and Cassidy got 44 percent with 9 percent of precincts in; under Louisiana’s system, a candidate needs to clear 50 percent plus one vote to win the seat outright.

Tea Party favorite Rob Maness, predicted to be the “shocker” winner of the night by Sarah Palin, got 11 percent.

Cassidy and Landrieu have to face off again on Dec. 6.

Cassidy steadily held an edge on the incumbent going into Election Day. He got the endorsement of  Sen. David Vitter (R-La.), who will be running for governor in 2015, House Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.), Dr. Ben Carson, former Arkansas  Gov. Mike Huckabee, Texas Gov. Rick Perry, former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, and Ambassador John Bolton.

Maness was backed by the Senate Conservatives Fund, which only endorsed a few Senate hopefuls who made it past the primaries.

Landrieu’s campaign has been a mixed bag, as environmentalists on the left pan her for being too friendly to oil companies and the candidate has panned her state for not being friendlier to Obama.

“The south has not always been the friendliest place for African- Americans,” Landrieu said recently. “It’s been a difficult time for the president to present himself in a very positive light as a leader.”