HOUMA — Norby Chabert beat out competitor Brent Callais Saturday in a runoff election for the state Senate seat representing southern Lafourche and Terrebonne parishes, according to complete but unofficial results.
Chabert is the third man in his family to hold the state Senate District 20 seat, following in the footsteps of his brother, Marty, and father, Leonard J. Chabert, who helped build the Houma hospital that bears his name.
Chabert, a 33-year-old Houma Democrat who grew up in Little Caillou, beat Callais, a 29-year-old Republican from Cutoff and a former Lafourche Parish councilman, by more than 1,500 votes.
Here’s the complete but unofficial results from Saturday’s election:
- Chabert got 9,576 votes, or 54.3 percent, of the 17,626 votes cast.
- Callais got 8,050 votes, or 45.7 percent.
The men two edged out state Rep. Damon Baldone, D-Houma, in an Aug. 1 primary election.
About 26 percent of the district’s 67,950 eligible voters turned out for Saturday’s runoff, an increase from the 20 percent voter turnout in the Aug. 1 primary,
At his celebration party in Chauvin, Chabert said he’s humbled by the show of support and to take the seat his father and brother once held.
Chabert serves through 2011, filling the unexpired term of Reggie Dupre, who stepped down last month to become Terrebonne’s levee director.
“It’s an honor, and as I told the audience here tonight, there’s a reason I went with red and white instead of the Chabert black and gold,” Chabert said, referring to colors used in his father’s and brother’s campaigns. “I didn’t want people to think I was trying to ride on my daddy’s coattails.”
Chabert said “voters responded today that they’re tired of negative campaigning,” referring to the attack ads and mailings that harped on his vote for President Barack Obama, a 2004 DWI arrest, and painted him as “too liberal for south Louisiana.”
At the same time, though, he thanked Callais for a “good race.”
Shortly after the election appeared to tip irreversibly in favor of Chabert, Callais said he gave his regards to his opponent.
“I called and I congratulated Mr. Chabert,” Callais said. “Anything he needs in the 18 months of his term, I’ll be more than happy to help him with.”
Callais avoided a question about the negative nature the campaign took in the runoff, saying his goal Saturday night was simply to congratulate Chabert.
As for future aspirations in politics, Callais left the door open.
“All I’m looking forward to is a nice, long vacation,” Callais said. “And who knows what the future holds.”
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