William Dudley "Dud" Lastrapes, Jr. (born November 30, 1929), is a Lafayette, Louisiana, businessman, who was the first Republican since Reconstruction to be elected mayor of his city, the fourth largest in the state, according to the 2000 census. Lastrapes (pronounced LA STRAPS) was mayor for three terms, having served from from 1980-1992. Previously, he was a member of the Lafayette Parish School Board from 1972-1980. After his mayoral service, Lastrapes served a two-year term as chairman of the Louisiana Republican Party from 1992-1994. He has been a member of the Louisiana Gaming Control Board, under appointment of former Republican Governor Murphy J. "Mike" Foster, Jr., since 1997. The term expires at the end of 2008; he is ineligible to be reappointed. November 30 is the 334th day (335th on leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 31 days remaining. ... 1929 (MCMXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Lafayette is a city on the Vermilion River in Lafayette Parish, in the U.S. state of Louisiana. ... The Republican Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States; the other being the Democratic Party. ... // Reconstruction was the process in US history that resolved the issues of the American Civil War when both the Confederacy and slavery in the United States were destroyed. ... This article is about the year 2000. ... 1870 US Census for New York City A census is the process of obtaining information about every member of a population (not necessarily a human population). ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday. ... Lafayette Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. ... 1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ... 1994 (MCMXCIV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated as the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal by United Nations. ... Murphy J. Mike Foster, Jr. ... 1997 (MCMXCVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2008 (MMVIII) will be a leap year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Lastrapes was originally a Democrat, but he switched his registration to Republican in 1959, when he was not quite 30 years of age. At the time, the state Republican Party had fewer than 9,000 registered members. Hence very few living Louisiana Republicans have been members of the party longer than Lastrapes. The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States; the other being the Republican Party. ... Year 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Early years, education, military

Lastrapes was born in New Orleans to William Dudley Lastrapes, Sr. (1897-1973), and the former Gertrude Schminke (1895-1985), but grew up in Opelousas, the seat of St. Landry Parish. The senior Lastrapes owned the Opelousas Credit Bureau and published the local Legal Times. Lastrapes graduated from Opelousas High School in 1946. He then attended the University of Louisiana at Lafayette (previously known as Southwestern Louisiana Institute). He obtained a bachelor's degree in English and communications in 1950. New Orleans is the largest city in the state of Louisiana, United States of America. ... 1897 (MDCCCXCVII) was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... 1973 (MCMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday. ... 1895 (MDCCCXCV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... 1985 (MCMLXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The city of Opelousas is the parish seat of St. ... St. ... 1946 (MCMXLVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... The University of Louisiana at Lafayette, or UL Lafayette[1], is a coeducational public research university located in Lafayette, Louisiana, in the heart of Acadiana. ... 1950 (MCML) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Thereafter, in January 1951, he entered the U.S. Air Force for a full four-year stint. He was stationed in South Korea throughout 1953. He left the military with the rank of staff sergeant. In recent years, he has been active in the Lafayette American Legion. 1951 (MCMLI) was a common year starting on Monday; see its calendar. ... Seal of the Air Force. ... 1953 (MCMLIII) was a common year starting on Thursday. ... The American Legion is an organization of veterans of the United States armed forces who served in wartime. ...

Occupation and family

In 1955, Lastrapes went to work as a reporter and newscaster for the newly-opened Lafayette television station KLFY, Channel 10 (CBS). After two years, he left to go into radio. Then in 1957, he returned to KLFY as news director, where he remained until 1970. 1955 (MCMLV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... CBS is one of the largest radio and television networks in the United States. ... 1957 (MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1970 calendar). ...

He married the former Rhonda Rougelot in 1957; she was also born in New Orleans but grew up in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and thereafter Lafayette, where she finished high school. The Lastrapeses, who divorced in 1989, have two sons. William Dean Lastrapes (born 1958) is the head of the Department of Economics at the University of Georgia at Athens, where he lives with his wife and two children. Bryan James Lastrapes (born 1959) is an engineer and project manager with Shell Oil; he lives with his wife and three children in Denver, Colorado; as of 2006, he has worked in oil exploration about Jackson Hole, Wyoming. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The University of Georgia (UGA) is the largest institution of higher learning and research in the State of Georgia. ... Athens is a city in Clarke County, Georgia, U.S., in the northeastern part of the state, at the eastern terminus of Georgia 316. ... Year 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Nickname: The Mile-High City Location of Denver in Colorado Coordinates: Country United States State Colorado City-County Denver (coextensive) Founded November 22, 1858 Incorporated November 7, 1861  - Mayor John Hickenlooper (D) Area    - City  154. ... Jackson is a town located in the Jackson Hole valley of Teton County, Wyoming. ...

In 1970, Lastrapes became a public relations officer of the former Guaranty Bank and Trust Company in Lafayette -- Chase Bank in 2006. In 1973, he went into the health and life insurance business. He worked in that capacity until he became mayor. He returned to his insurance business in 1992, after his mayoral service ended. 1973 (MCMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday. ...

Lastrapes and Bowen

Lastrapes was reelected to a second six-year term on the school board in 1978, but he left after two years to become mayor. In 1979, he ran for a state Senate seat in the jungle primary. Though he polled more than 10,000 votes, he finished third, and the seat was won by the Democrat Allen Bares (pronounced BAH REZ). For the song by The Smashing Pumpkins, see 1979 (song). ... In the jungle primary, all candidates run in the same initial election regardless of party label. ...

Lastrapes then filed, "while the iron was hot," to run for mayor. He defeated the incumbent Kenneth F. "Kenny" Bowen (1926-2002) in the jungle primary held in April 1980. Lastrapes polled 10,609 votes (50.3 percent) to take the mayoralty outright without the need for a general election under the unique Louisiana primary system that began operating in 1975. Bowen trailed with 5,649 votes (26.8 percent), while another Democrat, George Landry, finished with 4,839 votes (22.9 percent). The incumbent, in politics, is the current holder of a political office. ... Kenneth Francis Kenny Bowen (February 9, 1926 -- May 2, 2002) was a three-term Democratic mayor of Lafayette, Louisiana, the fourth largest city in the state, according to the 2000 census. ... Year 1926 (MCMXXVI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar). ... For album titles with the same name, see 2002 (album). ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... A general election is an election in which all or most members of a given political body are up for election. ... 1975 (MCMLXXV) was a common year starting on Wednesday. ...

Ironically, Bowen had been the unsuccessful Republican mayoral nominee in 1968. Bowen was defeated that year by 1,322 votes by the popular Democratic Mayor J. Rayburn Bertrand. Bowen was then elected in 1972, with 62 percent of the vote over three opponents in the then still closed Democratic primary. He was reelected in 1976. He won a third term in 1992 and succeeded Lastrapes, who did not seek reelection. 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday. ... 1976 (MCMLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday. ...

Mr. Republican Mayor

Lastrapes says that 1980 was clearly his greatest political year. In the span of some nine months, a Republican governor, David C. Treen, was inaugurated in Baton Rouge, Lastrapes became mayor in Lafayette, and Ronald W. Reagan was elected president. David Conner Treen, Sr. ... Order: 40th President Term of Office: January 20, 1981–January 20, 1989 Preceded by: Jimmy Carter Succeeded by: George H.W. Bush Date of birth: February 6, 1911 Place of birth: Tampico, Illinois Date of death: June 5, 2004 Place of death: Los Angeles, California First Lady: Nancy Reagan...

Under the Lastrapes administration, Lafayette annexed some 13 square miles of area. The city grew rapidly from 1980-1984, and then there was a slowdown in the important oil industry. Lafayette rebounded in the late 1980s and attracted some new industries and expansion of existing ones.

On March 18, 1983, Lastrapes recommended to the Lafayette City Council the construction of a four-lane river crossing at the Camellia Boulevard on the city's south side. After years of studies, protests, and delays, construction was completed in 2003. March 18 is the 77th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (78th in leap years). ... 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Lastrapes was reelected in 1984, when he defeated a city councilman. And he was reelected on March 8, 1988, when he narrowly derailed a strong a comeback attempt by Bowen. Lastrapes polled 13,424 votes (52 percent) to Bowen's 12,512 (48 percent). The mayoral election corresponded with the presidential primaries in Lousiana. 1984 (MCMLXXXIV) was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... March 8 is the 67th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (68th in leap years). ... 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

In 1985, Lastrapes recommended a 2 percent sales tax increase; voters approved it, along with a bond referendum that included the Camellia bridge. There has not been a municipal sales tax hike since that time in Lafayette. The sales tax revenue was used to hire city employees and to start capital improvement projects at a time when few others in Lafayette were building or hiring, said Dee Stanley, chief administrative officer of the Lafayette Consolidated Government. (Lafayette, like Baton Rouge, now has a combined city-parish government.) "Mayor Lastrapes understood the necessity of hiring good, qualified people to work in government," Stanley said. 1985 (MCMLXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Lastrapes is also known as the mayor who hired many women in city government. Lewana Shearer, the head of Lafayette's city-parish risk management and insurance division, was hired in the Bowen municipal administration in 1979. She started as a claims investigator and worked her way through the ranks to risk manager. She considers the Lastrapes administration to have been "the best years of my career because he gave women the opportunity to shine."

Lastrapes was not, however, the first Republican mayor in Louisiana. Smaller towns like Zachary in East Baton Rouge Parish (Jack Breaux, born 1926), Minden in Webster Parish (Tom Colten, born 1922), and Haughton in Bossier Parish (Elizabeth O. Sherwin, born 1918) elected Republican mayors earlier. Alexandria had a Republican mayor by defection from 1972-1973, when Charles Edward "Ed" Karst switched parties in the last years of his single term. Karst did not remain Republican, however, as he later returned to the Democrats to seek a judicial position in Rapides Parish in 1978. Zachary is a city located in East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana. ... East Baton Rouge Parish is a parish located in the state of Louisiana. ... Jack Louis Breaux, Sr. ... Year 1926 (MCMXXVI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar). ... The small city of Minden is the parish seat of Webster Parish, in the U.S. state of Louisiana. ... Webster Parish is a parish located in the state of Louisiana. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Year 1922 (MCMXXII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar). ... Haughton is a town located in Bossier Parish, Louisiana. ... Bossier Parish is a parish located in the state of Louisiana. ... Year 1918 (MCMXVIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar (see link for calendar) or a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. ... Rapides Parish is a parish located in the state of Louisiana. ... 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday. ...

Republicans have since served as mayor of Shreveport (Hazel Beard) and Baton Rouge (Bobby Simpson), but no Republican has won in New Orleans, Lake Charles, or Monroe or has been directly elected in Alexandria. Shreveport, Louisiana is the third largest metropolitan city in the state of Louisiana, USA. It is located in Caddo Parish, and as of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 200,145. ... Capitol Building Baton Rouge is the capital of Louisiana, a state of the United States of America. ... New Orleans is the largest city in the state of Louisiana, United States of America. ... This article is about the City of Lake Charles, La. ... The city of Monroe is the parish seat of Ouachita Parish, in the US state of Louisiana. ...

A Republican, Lester Joseph "Joey" Durel, Jr., reclaimed for his party the combined mayor/presidency of the City of Lafayette and Lafayette Parish in the 2003 jungle primary. 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Lastrapes as party chairman

Lastrapes was the second Lafayette Republican to serve as state party chairman in twenty years. Charles Camille de Gravelles, Jr., had held the post from 1968-1972, during a "dry" period for the Louisiana GOP. Charles Camille Charlie de Gravelles, Jr. ...

As chairman, Lastrapes was also at the helm when Louisiana Republicans were in a downcast mood after the return of Governor Edwin Washington Edwards to a fourth and final term as well as the first election of Bill Clinton as president. The Louisiana party held a convention in New Orleans in 1993, which was keynoted by former New York Congressman and Housing and Urban Development Secretary Jack French Kemp. (The 1988 national convention had also met in New Orleans.) Lastrapes had supported Kemp for the 1988 nomination. Kemp's failure to become a serious contender was perhaps Lastrapes' greatest personal political disappointment. Edwin Washington Edwards (born 7 August 1927) is a United States politician who served as governor of Louisiana for four terms (1972 - 1980, 1984 - 1988, and 1992 - 1996), more terms than any other Louisiana governor. ... William Jefferson Bill Clinton (born William Jefferson Blythe III[1] on August 19, 1946) was the 42nd President of the United States, serving from 1993 to 2001. ... 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... NY redirects here. ... Jack French Kemp Jr. ...

Thereafter, Lastrapes worked to elect Vice President George Herbert Walker Bush as president, and he became a personal friend of the president. Bush carried Louisiana in the 1988 race, but not in 1992. Lastrapes said that the 1993 conclave "helped to turn the party around" from a morale standpoint. In 1994, the GOP won control of both houses of Congress, and the mechanism was set in place to win the 1995 gubernatorial race to succeed Edwards. Then came a bitter GOP disappointment in the U.S. Senate race in 1996. The Lafayette Parish GOP rebounded to win the mayor-presidency race in 2003. George H. W. Bush - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... The United States Senate is the upper house of the U.S. Congress, smaller than the United States House of Representatives. ... 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Lastrapes attended three Republican national conventions as a delegate pledged to Reagan: 1976 in Kansas City, 1980 in Detroit, and 1984 in Dallas. He also attended the 1992 conclave in Houston briefly as an observer. Nickname: City of Fountains or Heart of America Location in Jackson, Clay, Platte, and Cass Counties in the state of Missouri. ... Motto: Speramus Meliora; Resurget Cineribus (We Hope For Better Things; It Shall Rise From the Ashes - this motto was adopted after the disastrous 1805 fire that devastated the city) Nickname: The Motor City and Motown Location in Wayne County, Michigan Founded Incorporated July 24, 1701 1815  County Wayne County Mayor... Nickname: Big D Location in the state of Texas Country United States State Texas Counties Dallas, Collin, Denton, Kaufman, and Rockwall Incorporated 2 February 1856  - Mayor Laura Miller Area    - City  385. ... Nickname: Space City Location in the state of Texas Coordinates: Country United States State Texas Counties Harris County Fort Bend County Montgomery County Incorporated June 5, 1837  - Mayor Bill White Area    - City  601. ...

Lastrapes' affiliations

Lastrapes was listed in 1984 as a member of the Council for National Policy, a conservative think-tank begun by the Louisiana Republican (then a Democrat) Louis E. "Woody" Jenkins intended to be a balance to the Council on Foreign Relations. Another Louisiana Republican who joined the group was state Representative Arthur W. Sour, Jr., (1924-2000) of Shreveport, who legislative service parallels the mayoral years of Mayor Lastrapes. Louis E. Woody Jenkins is a Louisiana State lawmaker. ... The Council on Foreign Relations The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) is an American foreign policy think tank based in New York City. ... Arthur W. Art Sour, Jr. ... Year 1924 (MCMXXIV) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar). ... This article is about the year 2000. ...

Lastrapes, a Roman Catholic, is a member of Lafayette Right-to-Life. He was formerly active in Little League baseball,when his sons were players. He has been a member of the Rotary Club for thirty years. He is active in blood donor drives. He is also a cancer survivor. The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ... Right to life or Pro-life, in its broadest sense, refers to holding human life as a paramount value. ... Little League is the name of a non-profit organization in the United States which organizes local childrens leagues of baseball and softball throughout the USA and the rest of the world. ... Logo of Rotary International Rotary International is an organisation whose members comprise Rotary Clubs (service clubs) located all over the world. ...

Lastrapes analyzes GOP growth in Acadiana

Years after leaving the mayor's position, Lastrapes was asked to give his take on why Republicanism took root in Acadiana. Here is his verbatim reply: Map of Acadiana Region with the Cajun Heartland USA subregion highlighted in dark red. ...

"Well, the oil industry brought in a lot of people. You know, this was not as homogenized, if you can say it that way, a group of people, or citizens, where it once was maybe 90 percent Cajun, 90 percent Catholic. A lot of that changed when the oil industry developed so strongly beginning in the fifties and people from Texas, Mississippi, Oklahoma, California, whatever, came into the state, many of them still here, and they became a pretty nice blend of oil industry and local Cajuns. And many married locally and so on. So you've had that blend over the years, and I think some influence came into play too, not that we don't have some conservative Cajuns; we do, a fair number, but the influence of a lot of the oil people coming from these states. It was mostly a conservative influence that had a little play on the flavor of politics locally, and still does to this day. I would say most, somebody would maybe challenge me, but I would say most of the people in the oil industry tend to be on the conservative side of politics and today mostly on the Republican side of politics." This article is about an ethnic culture. ... Official language(s) English (de facto) See also languages of Texas Capital Austin Largest city Houston Area  Ranked 2nd  - Total 268,581 sq mi (695,622 km²)  - Width 773 miles (1,244 km)  - Length 790 miles (1,270 km)  - % water 2. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... Official language(s) None Capital Oklahoma City Largest city Oklahoma City Area  Ranked 20th  - Total 69,960 sq mi (181,196 km²)  - Width 230 miles (370 km)  - Length 298 miles (480 km)  - % water 1. ... Official language(s) English Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Area  Ranked 3rd  - Total 158,302 sq mi (410,000 km²)  - Width 250 miles (400 km)  - Length 770 miles (1,240 km)  - % water 4. ...

References

Billy Hathorn, "The Republican Party in Louisiana, 1920-1980," Master's thesis (1980), Northwestern State University at Natchitoches

Billy Hathorn, interview with Dudley Lastrapes, July 14-15, 2006

Baton Rouge State-Times, April 19, 1980, 17B

Alexandria Daily Town Talk, May 5, 1973; September 17, 1978

http://www.laota.com/NewsletterSummer2002.htm

http://www.theind.com/letters2.asp?CID=1655425922

http://www.louisiana.edu/Academic/LiberalArts/HiGe/OCS/1960-1990.htm

http://www.timesofacadiana.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060712/NEWS0102/607120313/1051

http://www.lafayettegov.org/PublicWorks/dpt530CamelliaTimeline.asp

http://www.timesofacadiana.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060712/NEWS01/607120305/1002/NEWS01

http://www.sos.louisiana.gov:8090/cgibin/?rqstyp=elcpr&rqsdta=03088828