Maybe one reason Louisiana was his best Southern state was because those Cajuns had less of a problem with his foreign-sounding name than other Southerners had. Dukakis carried most of Cajun Country.
The Catholic Cajun South Louisiana was more Democratic at the Presidential level than the Protestant North. This ended somewhat abruptly around 2004, and the Obama years erased the differences.
Bill Clinton carried Louisiana 52-40 in 1996. Thank about that. Gore WOULD have carried it had he not been so strongly associated with the anti-fossil fuel movement.
The outmigration of blacks displaced by Hurricane Katrina was significant. I consider it the catalyst for the total downballot shift to the GOP in LA. Gov. Katherine Blanco's inept performance during Katrina didn't help, either.
