Andy Anders

John Felix Anders, known as Andy Anders (born May 3, 1956), is a farmer and agricultural equipment salesman from Clayton in eastern Louisiana, who is currently the Clerk of Court of Concordia Parish. Formerly, he was a Democratic member of the Louisiana House of Representatives for District 21, which encompasses Concordia and parts of Tensas, Madison, and East Carroll parishes. Since his service dates back to 2006, he is in 2019 the dean, or senior member, of the state House.^[1]

Background[]

Anders graduated in 1979 from Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, where he procured a Bachelor of Science degree in agriculture and business. In addition to farm equipment sales, he raises cattle and hay. Anders and his wife, the former Nancy Ratcliff, have three daughters, Dr. Bridget Anders Milliken and husband, Dr. Tom Terry Milliken; Dr. Rachel Anders Durel and husband, Dr. Jason Durel, and Emily Cooper Anders.^{[2][3][self-published source]}

Anders initially won his House seat in a special election held on September 20, 2006, to replace Democrat , who resigned to become secretary of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries in the administration of Governor Kathleen Blanco. He polled 4,616 (49.2 percent) and defeated two fellow Democrats to fill the fifteen months remaining in Hammett's term. In the regular nonpartisan blanket primary held on October 20, 2007, Anders, with 8,254 voters (60.75 percent), defeated three intra-party rivals.^[4]

Anders is chairman of the House Agriculture, Forestry, Aquaculture, and Rural Development Committee and serves too on the Insurance and Homeland Security committees. He is a member of the Tensas-Concordia Soil and Water Conservation Board, the Concordia Farm Bureau Board, and the State and Rural Agriculture Leadership. He is also a member of Rotary International in Ferriday. ^[2]

In 2010, Anders's voting record was ranked 75 percent by the conservative Louisiana Family Forum and 69 percent by the . In the 2011 legislative session, Anders voted to make the cigarette tax permanent and to establish a commission to investigate the proposed abolition of the state income tax.^[5]

Anders won reelection to the House in the nonpartisan blanket primary held on October 22, 2011. He defeated fellow Democrat Justin "Preacher" Conner of Ferriday, 9,217 votes (69.4 percent) to 4,060 votes (30.6 percent).^[6]

Anders endorsed the reelection in 2014 of Democratic U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu,^[7] who was unseated by the Republican Bill Cassidy.

Anders ran unopposed for reelection to the House in the primary election held on October 24, 2015.^[8]

In August 2018, Anders was placed in ICU because of a sudden life-threatening illness. He was released a few days later.^[9]

Anders is term-limited in the nonpartisan blanket primary scheduled for October 12, 2019. He had been expected to run for the District 32 seat in the Louisiana State Senate being vacated by the term-limited Republican of Caldwell Parish. Political columnist Sam Hanna, Jr., of the Ouachita Citizen in West Monroe, suggested that Anders would need to switch parties to be competitive in District 32 against a Republican. John Stephens of LaSalle Parish is expected run. Republican State Representative Steve Pylant of Franklin Parish had been expected to seek the Senate seat but is instead retiring from the legislature in January 2020. Hanna tapped former Tensas Parish Sheriff Jeff Britt and Newellton businessman William Edwin McDonald as potential candidates for the District 21 seat that Anders will vacate.^[10][11] With Anders out of consideration for the Senate seat, another Democrat, Steven E. May, the former sheriff of Caldwell Parish, has announced his candidacy.^[1]

References[]