One week from today, we will know exactly who wants to represent much of New Orleans, west Jefferson, and part of Baton Rouge in Congress.
Typically, a situation like this would start a political free-for-all -- it's not often that a seat for congress opens up.
"While the elections for Congress are held every two years, this tends to be a pretty safe seat," said Gambit political columnist Clancy DuBos. "When someone gets elected to this seat, he or she tends to hold it for years."
But so far, just a few people have announced they're running: State Senator Troy Carter, State Senator and former Louisiana Democratic Party Chairperson Karen Carter Peterson, and Baton Rouge activist Gary Chambers.
Meanwhile, some other notable figures that got some early speculation have announced they're out, including New Orleans City Councilmember Helena Moreno and State Senator Cleo Fields.
DuBos says it's very expensive to run for the U.S. House of Representatives, and even established state-level politicians would have to start over, because campaign finance law does not allow them to transfer their state campaign finds directly into a campaign for a federal-level office.
