Alonzo Knox knows what it's like to lose a campaign. He was determined to do better when he sought a prized Louisiana legislative seat in House District 93. The district includes the French Quarter and surrounding areas, the CBD and Warehouse District, the Superdome area and nearby neighborhoods.
Knox succeeded, defying others' expectations in the process. Now others are saying he has disrupted New Orleans politics.
"I think it's a good thing to disrupt anything that has grown stagnant," Knox said as we discussed the campaign in his downtown coffee shop. "I don't think it's a bad thing at all."
Though he didn't have the biggest names in local politics endorsing his candidacy, Knox said he realized that "all the endorsements really don't matter anymore."
The Feb. 18 primary was relatively quiet as six candidates vied for voters' attention. Knox narrowly trailed Sibil Fox Richardson.
With a lightswitch change, the March 25 runoff became a red-hot battle for attention, messaging that would stick, and votes.
Despite Richardson's primary lead and endorsements from most major politicians in town, Knox won 54% of the vote to Richardson's 46%. He now holds the seat vacated by Royce Duplessis, who recently won another special election for the state Senate.Â
Richardson had by far the most organized political support, including that of Duplessis and a gallery of other well-known, respected elected officials: U.S. Rep. Troy Carter; state Rep. Jason Hughes; a majority of the New Orleans City Council; and other familiar names.
That kind of political support normally translates into votes, but Knox had political supporters of his own — Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson, the Independent Women Organization, the AFL-CIO and Voters Organized to Educate, or VOTE, a group of formerly incarcerated individuals with growing criminal justice influence and political acumen.Â
In the final weeks, the gloves came off. The candidates traded fierce criticisms of one another — so much so that Richardson stopped attending debates.
For Knox, this campaign was far tougher than his 2021 race for New Orleans City Council from District C. He finished fourth in that contest with 11% of the vote. Freddie King III ultimately won the seat.
Knox recalls the one thing that made the difference between a loss and a win: He wasn't as prepared in 2021 as he was this time.
This time, Knox began by seeking endorsements. He didn't all he says he sought. He pushed on.
He had a story of his own to tell.Â
A Baton Rouge native and U.S. Marine Corps combat veteran, Knox graduated from Glen Oaks High School, studied political science and law enforcement at Southern University and earned a master's degree in business administration at Trinity University in Washington, D.C.
After working for the United Negro College Fund and another nonprofit in New York City, he and his wife decided to return to Louisiana, specifically New Orleans, so they could be near their families. They settled in Treme, became business owners of Backatown Coffee Parlor on Basin Street, and got involved in the Treme community. He set his sights on running for public office.
When Knox won the House seat, he got a congratulatory text from Richardson, who also extended her prayers. He heard from Duplessis and saw Hughes during his first trip to Baton Rouge as a state representative-elect.Â
Knox gives them respect. "They are more knowledgeable" about the Legislature, he said.
I'm guessing that only some of the 9.4% of District 93's voters who cast runoff ballots realize that Knox will have run again in October to keep the seat he and Richardson fought so hard to win. Turnout was a scant 6.1% in the primary, but it will be much higher when Knox and probably others appear on the same ballot as the race for governor.
Knox says he won't stop campaigning. He starts his new job April 10 when the annual legislative session begins. I reached out to Richardson to talk about the campaign, but she declined an extended conversation on the record. She said she's still processing.
Richardson lost, but don't count her out. Others may enter the Oct. 14 primary as well.
Just as Knox learned from his early defeat, I bet Richardson learned a lot from her state rep disappointment. Both should evaluate what happened and why, then plan accordingly for October.
Big name endorsements may be helpful in the fall, but they won't be everything.
Disruption changes things.
