Johnson, Abraham draw opposition; one challenger arrested

BATON ROUGE — All Louisiana congressmen face opposition after 4th District U.S. Rep. Mike Johnson and 5th District U.S. Rep. Ralph Abraham drew challengers Friday, although one of Abraham 's opponents was arrested before he left the building.

Billy Burkette, Independent-Pride, was charged with impersonating an officer and led off in handcuffs. He said he is chief of police of the Louisiana Band of Choctaw Indians as he was led off.

In the 4th District, Ryan Trundle, D-Shreveport, said he quit his job at a car dealership to run the race against Johnson.

"I'm just a regular clock-punching family guy who sees what's happening with the working people in our town, and they're left behind," he said. "They all want the same things — to raise the (minimum) wage and modern healthcare, Medicare for all.

"People are sick and tire of having to pay rich people's bills."

Mark David Halverson, no party-Bossier City, is making his second run in the 4th District. He finished with 1 percent of the vote in 2016.

"I want to make sure the people of the 4th District have another choice," said Halverson, who works in information technology. "We need some independent thinkers who make decisions on what's best for the district, not what's best for the party."

But Johnson, R-Benton, who qualified for re-election Friday, said he and the Republicans have delivered on their 2016 campaign promises.

"I do believe Republicans will maintain the majority and allow us to maintain our momentum," Johnson said. "We've had historic regulatory reform, historic tax reform; we're rebuilding the military and accomplishing things on the courts."

Jessee Carlton Fleenor, D-Loranger, said he entered the race against Abraham because he didn't think any congressman should be unopposed.

Fleenor, who said he is a vegetable farmer who delivers produce, fresh eggs and homemade jellies to his customers, also had sharp criticism for Abraham.

He called Abraham, who is both a veterinarian and human doctor, "an overpaid horse doctor" whose stance on repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act and advocating for work requirements for food stamps "is a war on poor people."

"I want to offer people another option and see if we can shake things up," he said.

Abraham qualified for re-election Wednesday by proxy.

Burkette is making his second run in the 5th. Abraham beat him in 2016 with 82 percent of the vote to Burkette's 18 percent.

He described Abraham as a "great person" but said the incumbent isn't focused on the 5th District because of his potential race for governor next year and his continued practice of medicine.

Libertarian Kyle Randol of Monroe, a paralegal, will also challenge Abraham.

"We need the (Libertarian) option so people can vote for principles rather than party rhetoric," Randol said.

The following candidates have qualified for Louisiana's six congressional seats: 

First Congressional District: Incumbent Steve Scalise, R-Jefferson; Jim Francis, D-Covington; Howard Kearney, Libertarian-Mandeville; Tammy Savoie, D-New Orleans; Lee Ann Dugas, D-Kenner; and Frederick "Ferd" Jones, Independent-Hammond.

Second Congressional District: Incumbent Cedric Richmond, D-New Orleans;  Shawndra Rodriguez, no party-Baton Rouge; Jesse Schmidt, no party-Gretna; and Belden "Noonie Man" Batiste, Independent-New Orleans.

Third Congressional District: Incumbent Clay Higgins, R-Port Barre; Rob Anderson, D-Quincy; Josh Guillory, R-Lafayette; Mimi Methvin, D-Lafayette; Larry Rader, D-New Iberia; Aaron J. Andrus, Libertarian-Westlake; and Verone Thomas, D-Lake Charles.

Fourth Congressional District: Incumbent Mike Johnson, R-Benton; Mark David Halverson, no party-Bossier City; Ryan Trundle, D-Shreveport.

Fifth Congressional District: Incumbent Ralph Abraham, R-Alto; Billy Burkette, Independent-Pride; Kyle Randol, Libertarian-Monroe; and Jessee Carlton Fleenor, D-Loranger.

Sixth Congressional District: Incumbent Garret Graves, R-Baton Rouge; Justin Dewitt, D-Baton Rouge; Devin Graham, Independent-Gonzales; and Andie Saizan, D-Springfield.

Greg Hilburn covers state politics for the USA TODAY Network of Louisiana. Follow him on Twitter @GregHilburn1