Edwin Edwards, former Louisiana governor who dominated state politics before going to jail, died at 93

NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (AP) – Edwin Washington Edwards, the four-term governor whose three-decade dominance of politics in Louisiana was nearly eclipsed by scandal and an eight-year federal prison term, died Monday. He was 93 years old.

Edwards died of breathing problems with his family and friends by his bedside, family spokesman Leo Honeycutt said. He had suffered from health problems in recent years and entered hospice care this month at his home in Gonzales, near the Louisiana capital.

“I’ve lived a good life, I’ve had better breaks than most, I’ve had bad breaks too, but that’s all part of it. I’ve tried to help as many people as I have. could and I hope I did, and I hope, if I did, that they will help others too. I love Louisiana and will always love it, “Edwards said in some of his comments. final words, according to Honeycutt’s statement.

Earlier in the week, the former governor also said: “I have made no secret that I consider myself a 20-year borrowed time and we each know that all this fun has to end at some point.” For him, that time was shortly after dawn this morning, according to the statement.

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Originally from the Acadiana region of Louisiana who was sworn in in 1972 in French and English, Edwards experienced a resurgence in popularity after his release from prison in 2011 at age 83. With his quick wit and flamboyant character intact, he married 32-year-old Trina Grimes, his third wife. They met when she started visiting him in prison after forming a pen pal.

“I would have entered prison as a happy man if I had known how this was going to end,” he said at his lavish 90th birthday party in August 2017.

They had a son, Eli, in 2013 and starred in a short-lived reality TV show, “The Governor’s Wife”. The longtime Democrat also attempted a political comeback, losing a second round to a Republican in a congressional race in southern Louisiana in 2014.

The federal case that led to his conviction in May 2000 involved state river casino licenses granted during and after his fourth and final term in the 1990s. Edwards argued that the case was based on misinterpreted conversations and recorded secretly and on the lies of former buddies who made deals to avoid jail.

Silver-haired, good-looking, and gifted with a dry sense of humor and easy charm, Edwards dominated Louisiana politics in the late 20th century just as Huey P. Long had dominated his early years. They shared a populist appeal to the oppressed and political fortunes of the state that stemmed in part from petroleum taxes. But Edwards, a consummate dealmaker, had a cooler demeanor.

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Edwards was born on August 7, 1927, to a tenant farmer and midwife in the parish of Avoyelles, part of the area colonized by 18th century French exiles from Nova Scotia, known as the Cadians. According to his authorized biography, his father’s ancestors were Welsh; his mother’s continental French; but Edwards always considered himself a Cajun.

Raised in the Roman Catholic Church, Edwards preached in the Church of the Nazarene as a teenager and he never drank or smoked. Despite his unwavering penchant for high-stakes gambling, dirty jokes, and his reputation as a womanizer, he has gained followers among Catholics and fundamentalists.

He had four children in a 40-year marriage to his high school friend, former Elaine Schwartzenburg, before divorcing in 1989. Five years later, at 66, he married 29-year-old Candy Picou, during a ceremony at the governor’s mansion. . They divorced after he went to jail.

A lawyer, Edwards began his political career on Crowley Town Council in 1954 before moving to the State Legislature and then Congress. He won the governorship in 1972 with the help of unions and black voters, realizing their strength during the civil rights era.

He appointed more African Americans to policy-making positions than any previous governor and led the passage of a new constitution. He also revised state revenues, tying oil taxes to price rather than volume, and filling Louisiana’s coffers during an oil boom.

Constitutionally barred from a third consecutive term, he left office in 1980 only to return four years later, having easily defeated incumbent President David C. Treen, the state’s first Republican governor since Reconstruction and a frequent target. Edwards beards. “It takes him an hour and a half to watch ’60 Minutes’” was typical.

The campaign was briefly put on hold by tragedy: Edwards’ younger brother, lawyer Nolan Edwards, was murdered by a disgruntled client.

A grieving Edwards resumed the race and claimed victory, then paid off his $ 14 million campaign debts by chartering a $ 10,000 trip to France for his friends and supporters.

“I wanted to be king all my life, and now I can be,” he joked during their stopover in Versailles.

But other problems loomed.

Oil prices have fallen. Edwards passed $ 700 million in very unpopular taxes.

Meanwhile, his reputation for impropriety caught up with him. He had seemed unresponsive to previous scandals, even when he admitted that he and his wife Elaine had received $ 20,000 from South Korean government agent Tongsun Park.

But in 1985 he was indicted on federal racketeering charges involving the regulation of hospitals and nursing homes. His fortunes had collapsed by the time he was acquitted the following year: losing after a runoff in 1987 as he faced certain defeat to Democratic Representative Buddy Roemer, Edwards seemed politically over.

But Roemer suffered political setbacks in his four years, including voters’ rejection of a tax review package. His stint in the Republican Party didn’t help.

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Edwards competed in the 1991 race – which was open to members of all parties – as did former Klansman David Duke, also a Republican candidate. Edwards and Duke secured places in a second round, which Edwards won in a landslide by stoking fears that an ex-Nazi in the governor’s mansion would bring economic ruin.

“Vote for the crook. It’s important, ”said a popular bumper sticker.

Edwards retired in 1996, but found himself under federal indictment again. Prosecutors said he took winnings to influence casino licensing.

This time the charges got stuck.

Associated Press editor Melinda Deslatte in Baton Rouge contributed to this story.