NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Indicted U.S. Rep. William Jefferson continued to fight for political survival Tuesday in a Democratic primary runoff against a former television reporter who argued that scandal had obliterated the influence Jefferson built during his 18 years in Congress.
Jefferson, 61, became Louisiana’s first black congressman since Reconstruction when he took office in 1991 following his 1990 election. Analysts gave him the edge over political newcomer 31-year-old Helena Moreno, despite Jefferson’s pending trial on bribery and money laundering charges.
Tuesday’s winner will be heavily favored in a Dec. 6 general election against a little-known Republican and two minor party candidates.
About 60 percent of registered voters in the New Orleans-based district are black and turnout among the demographic group was expected to be high with Sen. Barack Obama on the presidential ballot. Moreno is white.
“I think it’s an extraordinary help,” Jefferson said when asked about Obama’s influence. He had just voted, entering the booth with his 5-year-old grandson, William Jefferson Jones.
Demographics were not Moreno’s only obstacle, said longtime New Orleans political consultant and public relations executive Bill Rouselle.
“The only credential I’ve heard her put forward is that she’s clean,” Rouselle said. “And being clean ain’t enough. She just doesn’t come across as having the knowledge base or the experience base to adequately represent the constituents of the 2nd District.”
Moreno hoped to make inroads in Jefferson’s voter base by arguing that his once formidable clout in Washington is gone and that the district, still suffering since Hurricane Katrina flooded most of the city in 2005, needs new leadership.
“If he is trying to get things done it’s not happening,” said Greg Buisson, Moreno’s campaign spokesman.
Jefferson has shown remarkable political resiliency against black and white opponents. He survived challenges by a dozen candidates in 2006, ultimately winning a runoff against a popular black state representative.
By then, it was well known that federal investigators had raided his congressional office and that a raid on one of his homes in 1995 netted what investigators claim was $90,000 in bribe money stashed in his freezer.
Things got worse for Jefferson after that election. He was indicted by a federal grand jury that accused him of misusing his congressional office for business dealings in Africa. He also was stripped of a powerful House Ways and Means Committee post.
Still, he survived again on Oct. 4, when five other black candidates split much of the vote. Jefferson finished first with 25 percent; Moreno, the only white candidate, second with 20 percent.
None of the losers gave an endorsement, but more than two dozen black ministers spoke out in favor of Jefferson, emphasizing that he has been convicted of nothing.
Bishop Paul Morton of Greater St. Stephens Full Gospel Baptist Church said he believes Jefferson is innocent. If a jury finds otherwise, Morton argued, voters could then replace Jefferson with another experienced politician.
Jefferson has pleaded innocent in the corruption case but won’t discuss it publicly.
Despite his loss of the Ways and Means post, he has insisted that he remains influential. Pre-primary campaign commercials and his campaign Web site prominently feature pictures of him standing shoulder-to-shoulder with congressional leaders who, during the summer, toured Katrina-damaged areas.
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