INDReporter

Boustany touts margin over Landry

by Walter Pierce

According to the results of an internal poll, the retired heart surgeon holds a 61-23 percent lead over the Tea Party fave.

U.S. Rep. Charles Boustany, R-Lafayette, is trumpeting an apparent wide lead in November's odd-man-out 3rd Congressional District race against freshman GOP Congressman Jeff Landry.

U.S. Reps. Jeff Landry, left, and Charles Boustany

According to the results of an internal poll commissioned by Camp Boustany and conducted by pollster Glen Bolger of Public Opinion Strategies, the retired heart surgeon holds a 61-23 percent lead over Tea Party fave Landry in the 3rd. Tossing a generic Democrat into the Nov. 6 jungle primary - Louisiana scrapped its short-lived affair with party primaries and returns to the open primary system this year - Boustany's lead is only narrowly diminished: 56-20.

Boustany enjoys a 91 percent name recognition advantage over Landry, whom 68 percent of those polled recognized. In favorability, Boustany scored a 65-17 favorable/unfavorable rating; voters are cooler on Landry: 35-14.

The poll was conducted July 23-24 among 400 likely voters and has a margin of error of 4.9 points.

Boustany and Landry are expected to make their first appearance at the same venue on Aug. 17 when each is a scheduled speaker at Chamber Southwest's Legis-Gator luncheon at a Lake Charles casino. Aug. 17 is the final day to qualify for the November election.

Currently Boustany represents Louisiana's 7th Congressional District; Landry reps the 3rd. But the latter's district is being eliminated due to Louisiana's loss of one of its seven House districts, and his hometown in Iberia Parish is being absorbed into Boustany's 7th CD. The new district in southwest Louisiana, which largely mirrors Boustany's current district, will be called the 3rd CD effective Jan. 1, 2013.

Boustany is serving his fourth term in Congress.