Lydia P. Jackson

Lydia Patrice Jackson
Member of the Louisiana Senate from the 39th district
In office 2004–2012
Preceded by	Gregory Tarver
Succeeded by	Gregory Tarver
Member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from the 2nd district
In office 2000–2004
Preceded by	Danny Mitchell
Succeeded by	Roy A. Burrell
Personal details
Born	March 5, 1960
Political party	Democratic
Residence	Shreveport, Caddo Parish Louisiana, USA
Alma mater	Radcliffe College
Occupation	Bank officer
Religion	Baptist

Lydia Patrice Jackson (born March 5, 1960) is a Democratic former member of the Louisiana State Senate from Shreveport, Louisiana. An African American, Jackson represented the District 39 in Caddo Parish in the far northwestern corner of her state from 2004 to 2012.

Earlier from 2000 to 2004, she was the first person of her race to hold the District 2 seat in the Louisiana House of Representatives. Prior to 1997, she was an aide in the District of Columbia to Democratic former U.S. Senator J. Bennett Johnson, Jr.^[1] She is a graduate of Radcliffe College in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

In 2009, Jackson made statewide headlines by sponsoring Louisiana Senate Bill 335 to delay a tax break passed in 2008 to halt budget-cutting in public higher education during a downturn of the economy in 2009 and 2010.^[2] On June 14, 2009, the Baton Rouge Morning Advocate noted that the proposal passed the Senate but "appears to be dead in the House". Jackson was to have addressed the Press Club of Baton Rouge on the next day.^[3] See also cuts to higher education.

Jackson graduated from Radcliffe College, the female attachment to Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Outside the legislature, Jackson is a former research coordinator for Marshall Sigler, Inc.^[4] She later became a business development officer and vice president for Capital One Bank.^[5] Her father, Alphonse J. Jackson of Shreveport, was an educator, a former member of the Louisiana House, and one of the ten founders of the Louisiana Legislative Black Caucus.

Jackson was unseated in her bid for a third term in the Senate in the general election held on November 19, 2011. She lost to her Democratic predecessor in the seat, former Senator Gregory Tarver, a Shreveport businessman. Tarver prevailed with 9,168 votes (52.5 percent) to Jackson's 8,295 (47.5 percent).^[6]

In the nonpartisan blanket primary held on October 22, Jackson had led a three-candidate field with 9,393 votes (43.4 percent). Tarver trailed with 9,015 (41.6 percent). A third candidate, the white conservative Republican Jim Slagle, held the remaining 3,259 votes (15 percent).^[7]

Both the Jackson and Tarver families are long-time advocates for civil rights in the Shreveport community.

Possible 2012 congressional run

Jackson supposedly considered running for Louisiana's 4th congressional district seat in the United States House of Representatives against incumbent Republican John Fleming of Minden,^[8] but she never filed for the office. Fleming has held the seat since 2009.

Notes

1. Jackson bio on the Louisiana Senate site.
2. Mike Hasten, "Senate approves delaying tax break" in Shreveport Times, 2009 June 04. Arguments supporting SB 335: John L. Crain, "Concerns about higher ed funding" in Daily Star (Hammond, Louisiana), 2009 June 10, pp. 4A, 5A. Arguments opposing SB 335: C. B. Forgotston, "Mullet Scribe: State cries wolf too often" in Daily Star, 2009 June 09.
3. "Sen. Lydia Jackson Press Club guest" in Advocate (Baton Rouge), 2009 June 14, p. 3B.
4. "Louisiana: Lydia Jackson", Who's Who in American Politics, 2007-2008 (Marquis Who's Who: New Providence, New Jersey, 2007), p. 661
5. Under One Roof: Building Communities in the Delta, 11th Annual Delta Conference of the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), Mid-South Delta Region, Greenville, Mississippi, September 22–24, 2008.
6. Louisiana Secretary of State, General election returns, November 19, 2011
7. "Louisiana primary election returns, October 22, 2011". staticresults.sos.la.gov. Retrieved October 22, 2011.
8. "Online Guide to Louisiana Candidates, Elections and Politics". Retrieved July 1, 2012.

External links

• Louisiana State Senate – Lydia Jackson official government website
• Project Vote Smart – Senator Lydia Jacksone (LA) profile
• Follow the Money – Lydia Jackson
  • 2007 2005 2003 1999 campaign contributions