By Piper Hutchinson, Louisiana Illuminator
Liz Murrill, chief deputy to Attorney General Jeff Landry, has advanced to the runoff to replace her boss, who will become Louisiana’s next governor after winning the seat outright Saturday.
She will be joined in the runoff by Lindsey Cheek, a New Orleans attorney whose campaign launched the day she qualified for the race in August, months after most candidates had entered the field.
Murrill will be considered a heavy favorite in the Nov. 18 general election. She drew 45% support to Cheek’s 23%.
The pair beat out state Rep. John Stefanski, R-Crowley, who polled at 17%, Marty Maley, a Republican who once served as a West Baton Rouge prosecutor, and Perry Walker Terrebonne, a Democrat from New Orleans who engaged in minimal campaigning.
Murrill, previously executive counsel to former Gov. Bobby Jindal, has made a name for herself during her time with the attorney general’s office. She joined Landry in championing conservative causes, including a litany of lawsuits against the Biden administration and defending the state’s strict abortion ban in courts.
Before Cheek’s entrance, much of the race was a competition between Murrill’s advocacy for red-meat Republican causes and Stefanski’s focus on fighting crime, despite the attorney general’s limited role in law enforcement.
Cheek has maintained a lower profile in the race, running mostly on her progressive bona fides. The consistent themes in her messaging are her advocacy for abortion access and a desire to hold insurance companies accountable for the home coverage crisis in Louisiana.
Cheek will face an uphill battle in a runoff against Murrill, who’s held a considerable fundraising advantage and garnered support from deep-pocketed political action committees.
The runoff is on Nov. 18.