Several of Jeff Landry’s opponents in the race for Louisiana governor are responding to his decision to skip the first televised debate of the election season.
On Thursday, Landry said that he would not attend next Thursday’s debate hosted by WWL-TV. A spokesperson for the GOP frontrunner said he would skip the event because it was co-sponsored by the Urban League of Louisiana, claiming the group was “anti-Trump” and “soft on crime.”
Now, six other major candidates in the race, including Landry’s fellow Republicans, are criticizing his decision not to appear at the debate, with one accusing Landry of cowardice.
John Schroder was the first to react to Landry’s decision.
On Twitter, Schroder accused Landry of “running away from answering questions most pressing to voters.”
Democrat Shawn Wilson said he was “disappointed” by Landry’s “boycott.” Wilson went farther and called Landry’s decision to blame the Urban League’s involvement in the debate for his reason to skip as a racist play to his base.
“Thankfully, Louisiana voters recognize Landry’s refusal to debate before the Urban League for what it is – a thinly-veiled dog whistle that proves the Attorney General is only interested in representing the people who will give him a free pass,” Wilson said in a statement he later posted to Twitter. “I look forward to engaging with voters and sharing the best plans in the race for building a better Louisiana with a wide audience next Thursday, September 7th at 7 pm.”
Independent candidate Hunter Lundy called out Landry for “dodging debates all summer,” accusing the attorney general of not having “any vision to share.” Lundy also said voters deserve “to hear unscripted responses from candidates for governor” instead of dealing with “this type of disingenuous gamesmanship and partisan distraction.”
Republicans Sharon Hewitt and Stephen Waguespack addressed the issue without mentioning Landry by name. Both said they looked forward to bringing their messages to voters during the September 7 debate.
However, Waguespack tweeted a thinly-veiled knock at Landry.
He wrote, “A Governor must lead for everyone.”
Republican Richard Nelson is the only candidate who, as of the time of this publication, has not addressed Landry's decision to skip the debate in a statement or social media post.
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