After a decade as East Baton Rouge Parish’s Mayor-President, Melvin “Kip” Holden said he is “more than prepared” to become Louisiana’s next lieutenant governor — a role set to be vacated later this year by Republican gubernatorial candidate Jay Dardenne.
Holden announced his plans to run for the position in December 2014. His three challengers are all Republicans: state Sen. Elbert Guillory, Plaquemines Parish President Billy Nungesser and Jefferson Parish President John Young.
Holden said he and Dardenne have been friends ever since they graduated together with journalism degrees from LSU. They host the Manship Awards ceremony, an event honoring exceptional students, every year.
But Holden said he’s not looking to follow in anyone’s footsteps.
“Everything that I’ve done, I have made my own calls based on my ability to do the job,” Holden said.
Born in New Orleans, Holden was raised as one of five in a dysfunctional home in North Baton Rouge, marked by his parents’ unstable marriage and his mother’s string of abusive boyfriends.
Holden said one of his mother’s boyfriends, a known drug dealer, hid in the attic of their home and jumped out and shot Holden’s mother in the stomach with a .357 Magnum, nearly killing her.
His mother, Holden said, was helping him raise his own two children at the time, and dealing with the trauma of her critical condition took a toll on the family.
Despite a rocky upbringing, Holden managed to serve as his high school’s student government president and work as one of the first two black pages in the state Legislature.
He said he struggled to balance the tasks of child-rearing with working public relations for the Baton Rouge Police Department while taking college courses.
“Everything for me was consistently trying to survive whatever circumstances I found myself in,” Holden said.
After obtaining his master’s degree in journalism, Holden went on to graduate from Southern University Law Center.
Holden said he also uses the vocal skills he learned as a WWL Radio DJ and WBRZ-TV news host to aid in his current political career.
His transition from journalism to politics came in the early ’80s, with jobs as a U.S. Census Bureau public relations specialist and a Baton Rouge City Police public information officer.
Before his election as the Mayor-President of East Baton Rouge Parish in 2005, Holden worked his way up the political ladder as La. District 2 councilman, District 63 state representative and District 15 state senator.
Holden said he does not foresee a tough learning curve if elected lieutenant governor, a position revered for its role in Louisiana tourism and state promotion.
With backgrounds in both public relations and inner city living, Holden said he has spent the majority of his career promoting otherwise forgotten areas of Louisiana.
He said one of his greatest accomplishments as Mayor-President was his ability to foster economic development in the capital city.
Holden said he was able to reinvigorate the downtown area and spearhead construction on city roads.
He also said he attracted international clients to develop in Louisiana, including Chinese corporation Yuhuang Chemical Inc.’s $1.85 billion facility in St. James Parish.
As lieutenant governor, Holden said he would seek three pieces of information from city mayors: their city’s strengths, weaknesses and priorities.
“The biggest thing I’ll be doing is identifying … other sites that people can come and see [in the state],” Holden said.
He said he plans to use cable television, Internet innovation and his past connections to succeed on the job.
“What I would be doing now is letting people know about places they should try to take in, whether they live here or are visiting, so we can get a chance to expose the total beauty of this great state,” Holden said.

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Emily Brauner

Baton Rouge Mayor-President Kip Holden attends a press conference on Monday, Sept. 14, 2015 at Visit Baton Rouge, where the city will host a “Running of the Santas” in December.