Gillis William Long
Encyclopedia
Gillis William Long was a Democratic
U.S. Representative
from Louisiana
and member of the Long family
. Long served seven non-consecutive terms in the United States House of Representatives but placed third in two campaigns for the Democratic gubernatorial nominations in 1963 and 1971. Long was Representative for the since disbanded Alexandria
-based Eighth Congressional District between 1963 and 1965, and again from 1973 until his death of heart failure. Though he was elected to an eighth term in the House in 1984, he died seventeen days into that term.
In its April 29, 2007, edition, Long's hometown newspaper, the Alexandria Daily Town Talk
, declared that Long, along with legendary attorney
Camille F. Gravel Jr.
and American Civil War
General William T. Sherman, were the three most significant historical persons to be associated with Alexandria.
, Russell B. Long
, George Shannon Long
, Speedy O. Long
, Jimmy D. Long
, Donald Long, Dr. Bill Long, Carroll Long, Gerald Long
, Earl Kemp Long, Floyd W. Smith, Jr.
, and Mary Alice Long Rambo.
The Longs moved to Alexandria, the seat of Rapides Parish and the largest city in central Louisiana, when Governor Earl Long named Floyd Long to a custodial position at the Central State (Mental) Hospital in Pineville
. Later, Floyd and Birdie returned to Winnfield. Long had an older brother, Floyd Harrison Long, Jr. (1915–2003), a United States Army colonel and an official with Delgado Community College in New Orleans. He also had a sister, Doris Long Fletcher (1918–1981).
in Alexandria. He received a bachelor of arts degree from Louisiana State University
in Baton Rouge, where he was a member of Delta Kappa Epsilon
fraternity. In 1951, he received his J.D. law degree from LSU and was admitted to practice before the Louisiana Supreme Court
. He maintained a law office in Washington, D.C.
, and was authorized in 1954 to practice before the United States Supreme Court.
Long served in the Army infantry in World War II
. He rose from the rank of private to captain, and was awarded the Purple Heart
.
After the war, Long was part of the Internal Security Detachment at the Nuremberg trials
in Germany. He was legal counsel to the Senate Select Committee on Small Business from 1951-1952. He was chief counsel to the U.S. House of Representatives Special Committee on Campaign Expenditures from 1952–1954, and again in 1956.
in the Democratic primary. McSween had been elected to Congress in 1958 and 1960, after the death of Earl Long, who had defeated him in the 1960 Democratic primary. McSween in turn was chosen by the Democratic State Central Committee to run in the 1960 general election. Because he had no Republican
opposition, McSween was in effect reelected some two months after he had been denied renomination.
In 1962, Gillis Long, after he turned aside McSween, faced Republican opposition from John W. "Jack" Lewis, Jr., who said that he was challenging Long to bring the two-party system to Louisiana. Long prevailed, with 25,682 (64 percent) to Lewis's 14,448 (36 percent). Lewis won only in La Salle Parish, one of the most frequently Republican of Louisiana's parishes.
Over the years, Long and McSween put aside personal rivalry, and McSween endorsed Long for governor in the 1971 primary. So did McSween's close friend, the LSU historian T. Harry Williams
, author of Huey Long (1969). Williams was asked to introduce Long to a statewide television hookup during the campaign.
, who had never lost an election in Louisiana. Long's campaign advertising also reminded voters of "free schoolbooks and hot lunches [having first been] made available to our children under a Long administration."
Three LSU scholars described Long as he prepared his first campaign for governor:
, who as a young state senator had lost a race for insurance commissioner in the same 1963 Democratic primary. Speedy Long ran on McKeithen's intraparty "ticket" that also included former Mayor Ashton J. Mouton
of Lafayette
for lieutenant governor. Only McKeithen won; both ticket mates failed.
Speedy Long opposed the Civil Rights Act of 1964
on libertarian
and constitutional grounds. Gillis Long and all eight Louisiana members of the House voted against the civil rights law. Speedy Long, however, claimed that Gillis Long had voted to increase the size of the House Rules Committee in 1963, in order to permit the placing of the civil rights measure on the congressional agenda even though Long joined his Louisiana colleagues in opposing the measure on final passage.
In this much watched "battle of the Longs," Speedy Long prevailed by 4,900 votes. Speedy Long noted that Gillis Long had compiled a voting record more like that of the most liberal member of the Louisiana delegation, Hale Boggs
of New Orleans, instead of the most conservative members, Joe D. Waggonner, Jr.
, and Otto Ernest Passman
. As he pledged in the 1964 primary, Speedy Long voted in the Waggonner-Passman mode, rather than that of Representatives Boggs and Gillis Long. To win the seat, Speedy Long faced a stronger than usual Republican challenger in William Stewart Walker
of Winnfield, a retired U.S. Army officer with a distinguished World War II record.
as assistant secretary of the Office of Economic Opportunity
, often referred to as the "War on Poverty," in 1965-1966.
Despite his family connections, Long had not been reared in a wealthy family. Throughout his political career, he struggled to find ways to address the lingering problems of poverty
. He appealed to poorer voters, with the pledge that he would try to improve income levels in Louisiana.
Long's involvement with the federal anti-poverty program in Louisiana led to his close friendship with U.S. Senator George McGovern
's vice-presidential selection, R. Sargent Shriver
, an Illinois
native and a brother-in-law of the Kennedys
. Long's congressional voting record moved sharply to the left in his later years in the U.S. House; at times, his votes were consistent with the Congressional Black Caucus
, not with the more moderate of southern Democrats then still serving. Dr. Abramson's attacks on Long as a "liberal", however, were repudiated by the voters in the redrawn district.
The breach between Long and McKeithen lingered well past the 1963 campaign. In 1966, Long tried to defeat Amendment I, which allowed Louisiana governors, beginning with McKeithen, the right to serve two consecutive four-year terms if reelected. During the campaign over the succession amendment, U.S. Representative Adam Clayton Powell, Jr.
, of Harlem, New York, an African American, urged President Johnson to dismiss Sargent Shriver as head of the national anti-poverty program and replace him with Gillis Long, whom Powell considered more energetic than Shriver. Long, who was close to Shriver, blamed the Powell statement on McKeithen, who he claimed, was trying to discredit Long among white voters should Long again seek the governorship in 1967.
Long, as an ex-congressman, also ran in the 1971 Democratic primary. Again he finished third, behind State Senator
John Bennett Johnston, Jr., of Shreveport and Seventh District Congressman Edwin Washington Edwards. Long nevertheless ran ahead of his cousin Speedy Long and the fourth-place finisher, former Governor Jimmie Davis
. Edwards went on to take the governorship in a runoff with Johnston, and then in a general election with Republican David C. Treen
.
turned against him, Speedy Long did not seek a fifth term in 1972. Gillis Long, who had resumed his private law practice, instead ran to reclaim the seat; his task was alleviated by a former gubernatorial opponent and a former congressional colleague, Governor Edwards, who supported a districting plan that required the Eighth District to take in new liberal territory far to the south of Alexandria. After Long was eliminated in the first round of the 1971 gubernatorial primary, Edwards made Long this promise in order to siphon Long's voters from potentially supporting rival Johnston. Edwards won the runoff by 4,488 votes.
After winning the Democratic nomination for the seat, Gillis Long defeated (1) the surgeon Dr. S.R. Abramson of Marksville
, the American Independent Party
nominee, who ran second in the general election, and (2) the Republican Roy C. Strickland
(1942–2010), then a trucking executive in Ascension Parish, and later a businessman in The Woodlands, Texas
. Long polled 72,607 votes (68.6 percent), to Abramson's 17,844 (16.8 percent), and Strickland's 15,517 (14.6 percent).
by southern standards. William J. "Bill" Dodd called Gillis Long the "most left-wing of all the Longs." No strong conservatives emerged to challenge him for reelection.
In 1976, an independent with ties to the old White Citizens' Council
and the defunct Louisiana States' Rights Party, Kent H. Courtney
, ran against Long. No Republican filed for the race. Courtney, a brother of former States Rights' lieutenant governor candidate Cy Courtney of New Orleans, obtained only 6,526 votes (5.8 percent).
Republican Robert Henry Mitchell challenged Long in the first ever jungle primary
held in Louisiana for congressional elections in 1978. The conservative Mitchell, who did virtually no campaigning, polled 20,547 ballots (20.3) percent to Long's 80,666 (79.7 percent). Mitchell was setting the stage for potentially stronger Republican campaigns in the Eighth District in later years, but the terrain was hostile to Republicans.
In 1980, Republican Clyde C. Holloway
, an independent nurseryman, challenged Long. Robert Mitchell, the loser in the 1978 race against Long, also ran again. Long prevailed with 75,433 votes (68.9 percent) to Holloway's 27,816 (25.4 percent) and Mitchell's 6,243 (5.7 percent). Holloway had used his candidacy in part to rally opposition to a cross-parish school busing order issued by U.S. District Judge Nauman Scott
, based in Alexandria. Holloway would run again for the seat in 1985 in the special election called to select Long's congressional successor and in 1986 to choose Long's more permanent replacement.
In 1982, Long defeated Democratic State Senator Edward G. "Ned" Randolph, Jr., of Alexandria, with 71,103 ballots (59.6 percent) to Randolph's 46,656 (39.1 percent). In 1984, Long, in what would be his last election, defeated Republican Darrell Williamson, the Alexandria city planning director and later the public works director. Long polled 116,141 votes (80 percent) to Williamson's 32,780 (20 percent). Years later, in 2005, Williamson was removed from his public works position in a dispute with then Mayor Ned Randolph.
in 1984, died at the time of Reagan's second inauguration. The president honored Long, with whom he disagreed on many issues, by calling in his inaugural speech for a moment of silence.
Gillis Long is buried in the Alexandria National Cemetery in Pineville.
In the special congressional election mandated in 1985 to choose a successor to Gillis Long, the winner was his popular widow, Catherine Small Long, a native of Dayton, Ohio
. The Longs were married on June 21, 1947. At the time of his death, they had been together for nearly thirty-eight years. Bill Dodd, an observer of Louisiana politics, described Cathy Long in his memoirs as "the perfect wife for a politician. She was smart and made everyone feel perfectly at ease, and she was eager to help her husband . . . everyone loved Cathy."
Mrs. Long defeated four opponents including Republican Clyde Holloway, who had lost in 1980 to her husband, and then State Representative John W. "Jock" Scott
, son of U.S. District Judge Nauman Scott. (Though Scott was a Democrat
at the time of the special election, he switched parties later in 1985 and ran again for Congress in the revised Fifth District in 2004, only to be defeated by incumbent fellow Republican Rodney Alexander
)..
When he died, Long was the chairman of the House Democratic Caucus. Long was a transitional figure from the hegemony of conservative "Louisiana Democrats" who had supported segregation
and states' rights to the later era of liberal "national Democrats," who embraced civil rights and federal social programs without hesitation. Long also consolidated his hold on the district and demonstrated how one could use effective constituent service, media coverage, and public relations to remain in Congress even while repeatedly voting against the wishes of conservative constituents.
in Winnfield in 1994, along with his late colleague, Longite Senator Allen J. Ellender
. Also inducted was former Representative Lindy Boggs
of New Orleans, widow of Representative Hale Boggs.
Long is also remembered through the Gillis Long Center in Carville
, a facility for the treatment of Hansen's disease patients which serves additionally as headquarters for several units and programs of the Louisiana Army National Guard
, the Gillis Long Poverty Law Center of Loyola University School of Law in New Orleans, and the Gillis Long Bridge across the Red River from Jackson Street in Alexandria into the main street of Pineville.
He had two children, George Harrison Long (born 1954), a photographer in New Orleans, and Janis Catherine Long (born 1957), an attorney for the U.S. Trademark Office near Washington, DC.
Like many of the Longs, Gillis Long was a member of the Baptist
Church. An avid sportsman, Long purchased a hunting lodge north of Tallahassee, Florida
, known as "Bull Run Plantation
", and which later became Kinhega Lodge
.
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
U.S. Representative
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
and member of the Long family
Long family
The Long family is a family of politicians from the United States. Below is a list of members:*George S. Long , Oklahoma State Representative 1920, delegate to the Democratic National Convention 1948, U.S. Representative from Louisiana 1953–1958...
. Long served seven non-consecutive terms in the United States House of Representatives but placed third in two campaigns for the Democratic gubernatorial nominations in 1963 and 1971. Long was Representative for the since disbanded Alexandria
Alexandria, Louisiana
Alexandria is a city in and the parish seat of Rapides Parish, Louisiana, United States. It lies on the south bank of the Red River in almost the exact geographic center of the state. It is the principal city of the Alexandria metropolitan area which encompasses all of Rapides and Grant parishes....
-based Eighth Congressional District between 1963 and 1965, and again from 1973 until his death of heart failure. Though he was elected to an eighth term in the House in 1984, he died seventeen days into that term.
In its April 29, 2007, edition, Long's hometown newspaper, the Alexandria Daily Town Talk
The Town Talk (Alexandria)
The Town Talk, started as The Daily Town Talk in 1883 and later named the Alexandria Daily Town Talk, is the major newspaper of Central Louisiana. It is published by Gannett in Alexandria, the seat of Rapides Parish and the economic center of Central Louisiana.The daily newspaper has a circulation...
, declared that Long, along with legendary attorney
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
Camille F. Gravel Jr.
Camille Gravel
Camille Francis Gravel, Jr. , was a Louisiana, Democratic politician.Gravel spent much time and money supporting the Roman Catholic Church. Pope Pius XII honored Gravel with the "Order of St. Gregory" for his outstanding service to the church.-Education:Gravel graduated in 1935 from the University...
and American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
General William T. Sherman, were the three most significant historical persons to be associated with Alexandria.
Early years and ancestry
Long was born in Winn Parish to Floyd Harrison Long, Sr. (1883–1951), and Birdie Shumake (1892–1984). His paternal grandparents were Thomas Jefferson Long (1861–1948) and Mary Ella Wright. Among others, he was a cousin of Huey Pierce Long, Jr.Huey Long
Huey Pierce Long, Jr. , nicknamed The Kingfish, served as the 40th Governor of Louisiana from 1928–1932 and as a U.S. Senator from 1932 to 1935. A Democrat, he was noted for his radical populist policies. Though a backer of Franklin D...
, Russell B. Long
Russell B. Long
Russell Billiu Long was an American Democratic politician and United States Senator from Louisiana from 1948 until 1987.-Early life:...
, George Shannon Long
George S. Long
George Shannon "Doc" Long was a member of the powerful Long political dynasty in Louisiana and a Democratic U.S. representative from the defunct Eighth Congressional District from 1953-1958. The late Speedy O. Long of La Salle Parish, another member of the family, once jokingly compared George...
, Speedy O. Long
Speedy O. Long
Speedy Oteria Long was a Jena lawyer who was a Democratic U.S. Representative from central Louisiana between 1965 and 1973. Prior to his tenure in the since disbanded Eighth Congressional District, Speedy Long had been a member of the Louisiana state Senate...
, Jimmy D. Long
Jimmy D. Long
Jimmy Dale Long, Sr. , is a former Democratic member of the Louisiana House of Representatives. He represented District 23 from 1968 until 2000, being the "dean" of the Louisiana House when he returned to private life. He is a recognized authority on educational policy. For sixteen years, he...
, Donald Long, Dr. Bill Long, Carroll Long, Gerald Long
Gerald Long
Gerald Long , is a rare Republican member of the traditionally Democratic Long political dynasty in the U.S. state of Louisiana. Specifically, he is a third cousin of the late Governors Huey Pierce Long, Jr., and Earl Kemp Long...
, Earl Kemp Long, Floyd W. Smith, Jr.
Floyd Smith (Louisiana politician)
Floyd William Smith, Jr. , was a businessman from Winnfield, Louisiana, who served as the Democratic mayor of Pineville in Rapides Parish from 1966-1970. He was a maternal second cousin of former U.S. Representative Speedy O...
, and Mary Alice Long Rambo.
The Longs moved to Alexandria, the seat of Rapides Parish and the largest city in central Louisiana, when Governor Earl Long named Floyd Long to a custodial position at the Central State (Mental) Hospital in Pineville
Pineville, Louisiana
Pineville is a city in Rapides Parish, Louisiana, United States. It is adjacent to the city of Alexandria, and is part of that city's Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 13,829 at the 2000 census....
. Later, Floyd and Birdie returned to Winnfield. Long had an older brother, Floyd Harrison Long, Jr. (1915–2003), a United States Army colonel and an official with Delgado Community College in New Orleans. He also had a sister, Doris Long Fletcher (1918–1981).
Education and military
Long graduated from Bolton High SchoolBolton High School (Louisiana)
Bolton High School is a secondary educational institution located in the Garden District of Alexandria, the seat of Rapides Parish and the largest city in central Louisiana. The school is named for its benefactor, James W...
in Alexandria. He received a bachelor of arts degree from Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, most often referred to as Louisiana State University, or LSU, is a public coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The University was founded in 1853 in what is now known as Pineville, Louisiana, under the name...
in Baton Rouge, where he was a member of Delta Kappa Epsilon
Delta Kappa Epsilon
Delta Kappa Epsilon is a fraternity founded at Yale College in 1844 by 15 men of the sophomore class who had not been invited to join the two existing societies...
fraternity. In 1951, he received his J.D. law degree from LSU and was admitted to practice before the Louisiana Supreme Court
Louisiana Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of Louisiana is the highest court and court of last resort in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The modern Supreme Court, composed of seven justices, meets in the French Quarter of New Orleans....
. He maintained a law office in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, and was authorized in 1954 to practice before the United States Supreme Court.
Long served in the Army infantry in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. He rose from the rank of private to captain, and was awarded the Purple Heart
Purple Heart
The Purple Heart is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those who have been wounded or killed while serving on or after April 5, 1917 with the U.S. military. The National Purple Heart Hall of Honor is located in New Windsor, New York...
.
After the war, Long was part of the Internal Security Detachment at the Nuremberg trials
Nuremberg Trials
The Nuremberg Trials were a series of military tribunals, held by the victorious Allied forces of World War II, most notable for the prosecution of prominent members of the political, military, and economic leadership of the defeated Nazi Germany....
in Germany. He was legal counsel to the Senate Select Committee on Small Business from 1951-1952. He was chief counsel to the U.S. House of Representatives Special Committee on Campaign Expenditures from 1952–1954, and again in 1956.
First election to Congress
In 1962, Long unseated incumbent U.S. Representative Harold B. McSweenHarold B. McSween
Harold Barnett McSween was a Louisiana businessman and politician who served in the now defunct 8th congressional district for two terms as a Democrat....
in the Democratic primary. McSween had been elected to Congress in 1958 and 1960, after the death of Earl Long, who had defeated him in the 1960 Democratic primary. McSween in turn was chosen by the Democratic State Central Committee to run in the 1960 general election. Because he had no Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
opposition, McSween was in effect reelected some two months after he had been denied renomination.
In 1962, Gillis Long, after he turned aside McSween, faced Republican opposition from John W. "Jack" Lewis, Jr., who said that he was challenging Long to bring the two-party system to Louisiana. Long prevailed, with 25,682 (64 percent) to Lewis's 14,448 (36 percent). Lewis won only in La Salle Parish, one of the most frequently Republican of Louisiana's parishes.
Over the years, Long and McSween put aside personal rivalry, and McSween endorsed Long for governor in the 1971 primary. So did McSween's close friend, the LSU historian T. Harry Williams
T. Harry Williams
Thomas Harry Williams was an award-winning historian at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge whose career began in 1941 and extended for thirty-eight years until his death at the age of seventy...
, author of Huey Long (1969). Williams was asked to introduce Long to a statewide television hookup during the campaign.
Gubernatorial campaign 1963
In what proved to be a major error in judgement, Long entered the December 1963 Democratic primary for governor. One of his campaign advertisements featured the 40-year-old crew-cut Long standing before a state charity hospital and declaring that the "Longs Stand for People!" He was hence running as a Long factional candidate, not just as a candidate who happened to be named Long. He secured the support of U.S. Senator Russell B. LongRussell B. Long
Russell Billiu Long was an American Democratic politician and United States Senator from Louisiana from 1948 until 1987.-Early life:...
, who had never lost an election in Louisiana. Long's campaign advertising also reminded voters of "free schoolbooks and hot lunches [having first been] made available to our children under a Long administration."
Three LSU scholars described Long as he prepared his first campaign for governor:
Failed reelection campaign, 1964
Having failed to become governor, Long was challenged for renomination in 1964 by another cousin, Speedy O. Long (1928–2006), of JenaJena, Louisiana
Jena is a town in and the parish seat of La Salle Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 2,971 at the 2000 census.In September 2006, Jena became the focus of national news stories in the United States for a racial controversy involving its school system and a group of students known...
, who as a young state senator had lost a race for insurance commissioner in the same 1963 Democratic primary. Speedy Long ran on McKeithen's intraparty "ticket" that also included former Mayor Ashton J. Mouton
Ashton J. Mouton
Ashton Joseph Mouton, Sr. , was a United States businessman and politician who became, at thirty-one, the youngest mayor in the history of Lafayette, Louisiana. A Democrat, Mouton was elected mayor in 1948. He served two four-year terms and left office in 1956...
of Lafayette
Lafayette, Louisiana
Lafayette is a city in and the parish seat of Lafayette Parish, Louisiana, United States, on the Vermilion River. The population was 120,623 at the 2010 census...
for lieutenant governor. Only McKeithen won; both ticket mates failed.
Speedy Long opposed the Civil Rights Act of 1964
Civil Rights Act of 1964
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was a landmark piece of legislation in the United States that outlawed major forms of discrimination against African Americans and women, including racial segregation...
on libertarian
Libertarianism
Libertarianism, in the strictest sense, is the political philosophy that holds individual liberty as the basic moral principle of society. In the broadest sense, it is any political philosophy which approximates this view...
and constitutional grounds. Gillis Long and all eight Louisiana members of the House voted against the civil rights law. Speedy Long, however, claimed that Gillis Long had voted to increase the size of the House Rules Committee in 1963, in order to permit the placing of the civil rights measure on the congressional agenda even though Long joined his Louisiana colleagues in opposing the measure on final passage.
In this much watched "battle of the Longs," Speedy Long prevailed by 4,900 votes. Speedy Long noted that Gillis Long had compiled a voting record more like that of the most liberal member of the Louisiana delegation, Hale Boggs
Hale Boggs
Thomas Hale Boggs Sr. , was an American Democratic politician and a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New Orleans, Louisiana...
of New Orleans, instead of the most conservative members, Joe D. Waggonner, Jr.
Joe Waggonner
Joseph David Waggonner, Jr. , better known as Joe D. Waggonner, was a Democratic U.S. Representative from Bossier Parish who represented the old 4th Congressional District of northwest Louisiana from December 1961 until January 1979. He was also a confidant of Republican U.S...
, and Otto Ernest Passman
Otto Passman
Otto Ernest Passman was a conservative Democratic congressman from Monroe in northeastern Louisiana, who served from 1947 to 1977. He is primarily remembered for his detailed knowledge and mostly opposition to foreign aid...
. As he pledged in the 1964 primary, Speedy Long voted in the Waggonner-Passman mode, rather than that of Representatives Boggs and Gillis Long. To win the seat, Speedy Long faced a stronger than usual Republican challenger in William Stewart Walker
William Stewart Walker
William Stewart Walker, usually known as Stewart Walker , was a lieutenant colonel from Winnfield, Louisiana who, during World War II as a United States Army major, rescued 380 of his fellow soldiers from behind enemy lines in Belgium in December 1944...
of Winnfield, a retired U.S. Army officer with a distinguished World War II record.
"War on Poverty"
After his defeat for Congress, Long accepted an appointment in 1965 from President JohnsonLyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon Baines Johnson , often referred to as LBJ, was the 36th President of the United States after his service as the 37th Vice President of the United States...
as assistant secretary of the Office of Economic Opportunity
Office of Economic Opportunity
The Office of Economic Opportunity was the agency responsible for administering most of the War on Poverty programs created as part of United States President Lyndon B. Johnson's Great Society legislative agenda.- History :...
, often referred to as the "War on Poverty," in 1965-1966.
Despite his family connections, Long had not been reared in a wealthy family. Throughout his political career, he struggled to find ways to address the lingering problems of poverty
Poverty
Poverty is the lack of a certain amount of material possessions or money. Absolute poverty or destitution is inability to afford basic human needs, which commonly includes clean and fresh water, nutrition, health care, education, clothing and shelter. About 1.7 billion people are estimated to live...
. He appealed to poorer voters, with the pledge that he would try to improve income levels in Louisiana.
Long's involvement with the federal anti-poverty program in Louisiana led to his close friendship with U.S. Senator George McGovern
George McGovern
George Stanley McGovern is an historian, author, and former U.S. Representative, U.S. Senator, and the Democratic Party nominee in the 1972 presidential election....
's vice-presidential selection, R. Sargent Shriver
Sargent Shriver
Robert Sargent Shriver, Jr., known as Sargent Shriver, R. Sargent Shriver, or, from childhood, Sarge, was an American statesman and activist. As the husband of Eunice Kennedy Shriver, he was part of the Kennedy family, serving in the Kennedy and Johnson administrations...
, an Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
native and a brother-in-law of the Kennedys
Kennedy family
In the United States, the phrase Kennedy family commonly refers to the family descending from the marriage of the Irish-Americans Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr. and Rose Elizabeth Fitzgerald that was prominent in American politics and government. Their political involvement has revolved around the...
. Long's congressional voting record moved sharply to the left in his later years in the U.S. House; at times, his votes were consistent with the Congressional Black Caucus
Congressional Black Caucus
The Congressional Black Caucus is an organization representing the black members of the United States Congress. Membership is exclusive to blacks, and its chair in the 112th Congress is Representative Emanuel Cleaver of Missouri.-Aims:...
, not with the more moderate of southern Democrats then still serving. Dr. Abramson's attacks on Long as a "liberal", however, were repudiated by the voters in the redrawn district.
The breach between Long and McKeithen lingered well past the 1963 campaign. In 1966, Long tried to defeat Amendment I, which allowed Louisiana governors, beginning with McKeithen, the right to serve two consecutive four-year terms if reelected. During the campaign over the succession amendment, U.S. Representative Adam Clayton Powell, Jr.
Adam Clayton Powell, Jr.
Adam Clayton Powell, Jr., was an American politician and pastor who represented Harlem, New York City, in the United States House of Representatives . He was the first person of African-American descent elected to Congress from New York and became a powerful national politician...
, of Harlem, New York, an African American, urged President Johnson to dismiss Sargent Shriver as head of the national anti-poverty program and replace him with Gillis Long, whom Powell considered more energetic than Shriver. Long, who was close to Shriver, blamed the Powell statement on McKeithen, who he claimed, was trying to discredit Long among white voters should Long again seek the governorship in 1967.
Second gubernatorial bid, 1971
Main Article: Louisiana gubernatorial election, 1971-72Louisiana gubernatorial election, 1971-72
The Louisiana gubernatorial election of 1971–1972 was held in three rounds. The two Democratic Party primaries were held on November 6 and December 8, 1971...
Long, as an ex-congressman, also ran in the 1971 Democratic primary. Again he finished third, behind State Senator
Louisiana State Legislature
The Louisiana State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is bicameral body, comprising the lower house, the Louisiana House of Representatives with 105 representatives, and the upper house, the Louisiana Senate with 39 senators...
John Bennett Johnston, Jr., of Shreveport and Seventh District Congressman Edwin Washington Edwards. Long nevertheless ran ahead of his cousin Speedy Long and the fourth-place finisher, former Governor Jimmie Davis
Jimmie Davis
James Houston Davis , better known as Jimmie Davis, was a noted singer of both sacred and popular songs who served two nonconsecutive terms as the 47th Governor of Louisiana...
. Edwards went on to take the governorship in a runoff with Johnston, and then in a general election with Republican David C. Treen
David C. Treen
David Conner "Dave" Treen, Sr. , was an American attorney and politician from Mandeville, St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana – the first Republican Governor of the U.S. state of Louisiana since Reconstruction. He was the first Republican in modern times to have served in the U.S...
.
Successor to Speedy Long in Congress
When redistrictingRedistricting
Redistricting is the process of drawing United States electoral district boundaries, often in response to population changes determined by the results of the decennial census. In 36 states, the state legislature has primary responsibility for creating a redistricting plan, in many cases subject to...
turned against him, Speedy Long did not seek a fifth term in 1972. Gillis Long, who had resumed his private law practice, instead ran to reclaim the seat; his task was alleviated by a former gubernatorial opponent and a former congressional colleague, Governor Edwards, who supported a districting plan that required the Eighth District to take in new liberal territory far to the south of Alexandria. After Long was eliminated in the first round of the 1971 gubernatorial primary, Edwards made Long this promise in order to siphon Long's voters from potentially supporting rival Johnston. Edwards won the runoff by 4,488 votes.
After winning the Democratic nomination for the seat, Gillis Long defeated (1) the surgeon Dr. S.R. Abramson of Marksville
Marksville, Louisiana
Marksville is a city in and the parish seat of Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 5,537 at the 2000 census. Louisiana's first land-based casino, Paragon Casino Resort, opened in Marksville in June 1994...
, the American Independent Party
American Independent Party
The American Independent Party is a right-wing political party of the United States that was established in 1967 by Bill and Eileen Shearer. In 1968, the American Independent Party nominated George C. Wallace as its presidential candidate and retired Air Force General Curtis E. LeMay as the vice...
nominee, who ran second in the general election, and (2) the Republican Roy C. Strickland
Roy C. Strickland
Roy Clifton Strickland was a businessman in The Woodlands, Texas, north of Houston, who was a pioneer in the development of the Republican Party in the U.S. state of Louisiana. Strickland challenged the Democrat Gillis William Long, a part of the Long political dynasty, for the United States House...
(1942–2010), then a trucking executive in Ascension Parish, and later a businessman in The Woodlands, Texas
The Woodlands, Texas
The Woodlands is a master-planned community and a Census-designated place in the U.S. state of Texas within the metropolitan area. The population of the CDP was 55,649 at the 2000 census—a 90 percent increase over its 1990 population. According to the 2010 census, The Woodlands' population rose...
. Long polled 72,607 votes (68.6 percent), to Abramson's 17,844 (16.8 percent), and Strickland's 15,517 (14.6 percent).
Lock on 8th District
Long returned to the duties of a congressman in 1973. A man of great determination, but who feared for his own health, Long believed that government was essential to protect the interests of the poorest, most vulnerable citizens. His voting record was liberalLiberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
by southern standards. William J. "Bill" Dodd called Gillis Long the "most left-wing of all the Longs." No strong conservatives emerged to challenge him for reelection.
In 1976, an independent with ties to the old White Citizens' Council
White Citizens' Council
The White Citizens' Council was an American white supremacist organization formed on July 11, 1954. After 1956, it was known as the Citizens' Councils of America...
and the defunct Louisiana States' Rights Party, Kent H. Courtney
Kent Courtney
Kent Harbinson Courtney was a leading figure in the "Radical Right" of American politics from the 1950s to the 1970s. Courtney was born in St. Paul, Minnesota, but his family moved to New Orleans, when he was a young child...
, ran against Long. No Republican filed for the race. Courtney, a brother of former States Rights' lieutenant governor candidate Cy Courtney of New Orleans, obtained only 6,526 votes (5.8 percent).
Republican Robert Henry Mitchell challenged Long in the first ever jungle primary
Jungle primary
A nonpartisan blanket primary is a primary election in which all candidates for elected office run in the same primary regardless of political party. Under this system, the top two candidates who receive the most votes advance to the next round, as in a runoff election...
held in Louisiana for congressional elections in 1978. The conservative Mitchell, who did virtually no campaigning, polled 20,547 ballots (20.3) percent to Long's 80,666 (79.7 percent). Mitchell was setting the stage for potentially stronger Republican campaigns in the Eighth District in later years, but the terrain was hostile to Republicans.
In 1980, Republican Clyde C. Holloway
Clyde C. Holloway
Clyde Cecil Holloway is an American small business owner from Forest Hill in the southern part of Rapides Parish who is one of five members of the Louisiana Public Service Commission. He also served as a conservative Republican member of the U.S...
, an independent nurseryman, challenged Long. Robert Mitchell, the loser in the 1978 race against Long, also ran again. Long prevailed with 75,433 votes (68.9 percent) to Holloway's 27,816 (25.4 percent) and Mitchell's 6,243 (5.7 percent). Holloway had used his candidacy in part to rally opposition to a cross-parish school busing order issued by U.S. District Judge Nauman Scott
Nauman Scott
Nauman Steele Scott, II , was a Republican-appointed federal judge in the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana from 1970 until 2001, who ordered cross-parish busing guidelines in 1980 to foster racial balance in Rapides Parish public schools...
, based in Alexandria. Holloway would run again for the seat in 1985 in the special election called to select Long's congressional successor and in 1986 to choose Long's more permanent replacement.
In 1982, Long defeated Democratic State Senator Edward G. "Ned" Randolph, Jr., of Alexandria, with 71,103 ballots (59.6 percent) to Randolph's 46,656 (39.1 percent). In 1984, Long, in what would be his last election, defeated Republican Darrell Williamson, the Alexandria city planning director and later the public works director. Long polled 116,141 votes (80 percent) to Williamson's 32,780 (20 percent). Years later, in 2005, Williamson was removed from his public works position in a dispute with then Mayor Ned Randolph.
Succession in Congress by Cathy Long
Ironically, Long, who had campaigned for failed Democratic presidential nominee Walter F. MondaleWalter Mondale
Walter Frederick "Fritz" Mondale is an American Democratic Party politician, who served as the 42nd Vice President of the United States , under President Jimmy Carter, and as a United States Senator for Minnesota...
in 1984, died at the time of Reagan's second inauguration. The president honored Long, with whom he disagreed on many issues, by calling in his inaugural speech for a moment of silence.
Gillis Long is buried in the Alexandria National Cemetery in Pineville.
In the special congressional election mandated in 1985 to choose a successor to Gillis Long, the winner was his popular widow, Catherine Small Long, a native of Dayton, Ohio
Dayton, Ohio
Dayton is the 6th largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County, the fifth most populous county in the state. The population was 141,527 at the 2010 census. The Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 841,502 in the 2010 census...
. The Longs were married on June 21, 1947. At the time of his death, they had been together for nearly thirty-eight years. Bill Dodd, an observer of Louisiana politics, described Cathy Long in his memoirs as "the perfect wife for a politician. She was smart and made everyone feel perfectly at ease, and she was eager to help her husband . . . everyone loved Cathy."
Mrs. Long defeated four opponents including Republican Clyde Holloway, who had lost in 1980 to her husband, and then State Representative John W. "Jock" Scott
Jock Scott
John Wyeth "Jock" Scott, II was a lawyer and college professor in Alexandria, who served three terms from District 26 in the Louisiana House of Representatives, first as a Democrat and then as a Republican . He was defeated in a race for the Louisiana State Senate in 1987...
, son of U.S. District Judge Nauman Scott. (Though Scott was a Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
at the time of the special election, he switched parties later in 1985 and ran again for Congress in the revised Fifth District in 2004, only to be defeated by incumbent fellow Republican Rodney Alexander
Rodney Alexander
Rodney McKinnie Alexander is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2003. He is a member of the Republican Party. The district covers twenty-two parishes in roughly the northeast quadrant of the state...
)..
When he died, Long was the chairman of the House Democratic Caucus. Long was a transitional figure from the hegemony of conservative "Louisiana Democrats" who had supported segregation
Racial segregation
Racial segregation is the separation of humans into racial groups in daily life. It may apply to activities such as eating in a restaurant, drinking from a water fountain, using a public toilet, attending school, going to the movies, or in the rental or purchase of a home...
and states' rights to the later era of liberal "national Democrats," who embraced civil rights and federal social programs without hesitation. Long also consolidated his hold on the district and demonstrated how one could use effective constituent service, media coverage, and public relations to remain in Congress even while repeatedly voting against the wishes of conservative constituents.
Remembrances
Long was inducted posthumously into the Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of FameLouisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame
The Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame in Winnfield, Louisiana, highlights the careers of more than a hundred of the state’s leading politicians and political journalists. Because three governors, Huey P. Long, Jr., Oscar K...
in Winnfield in 1994, along with his late colleague, Longite Senator Allen J. Ellender
Allen J. Ellender
Allen Joseph Ellender was a popular U.S. senator from Houma, Louisiana , who served from 1937 until his death. He was a Democrat who was originally allied with the legendary Huey Pierce Long, Jr.. As Senator he compiled a generally conservative record, voting 77% of the time with the Conservative...
. Also inducted was former Representative Lindy Boggs
Lindy Boggs
Marie Corinne Morrison Claiborne Boggs, usually known as Lindy Boggs , is a United States political figure who served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives and later as ambassador to the Vatican. She was the first woman elected to Congress from Louisiana...
of New Orleans, widow of Representative Hale Boggs.
Long is also remembered through the Gillis Long Center in Carville
Carville, Louisiana
Carville is a neighborhood of St. Gabriel in Iberville Parish, Louisiana, United States that is 16 miles south of Baton Rouge on the Mississippi River. Carville is the hometown of political personality James Carville and was named after his grandfather, the postmaster. It is also the location of...
, a facility for the treatment of Hansen's disease patients which serves additionally as headquarters for several units and programs of the Louisiana Army National Guard
Louisiana Army National Guard
The Louisiana Army National Guard is a component of the United States Army and the United States National Guard. The Constitution of the United States specifically charges the National Guard with dual federal and state missions. In fact, the National Guard is the only United States military force...
, the Gillis Long Poverty Law Center of Loyola University School of Law in New Orleans, and the Gillis Long Bridge across the Red River from Jackson Street in Alexandria into the main street of Pineville.
He had two children, George Harrison Long (born 1954), a photographer in New Orleans, and Janis Catherine Long (born 1957), an attorney for the U.S. Trademark Office near Washington, DC.
Like many of the Longs, Gillis Long was a member of the Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
Church. An avid sportsman, Long purchased a hunting lodge north of Tallahassee, Florida
Tallahassee, Florida
Tallahassee is the capital of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County, and is the 128th largest city in the United States. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In 2010, the population recorded by...
, known as "Bull Run Plantation
Bull Run Plantation
Bull Run Plantation was a private estate owned by Julien C. Headley located in Leon County, Florida, United States.-History:Originally a large part of Water Oak Plantation owned by Frances C. Griscom, Headley purchased all but a few hundred acres from Griscom in 1951. He named it Bull Run...
", and which later became Kinhega Lodge
Kinhega Lodge
Kinhega Lodge was a hunting and fishing plantation located in northern Leon County, Florida, United States on Lake Iamonia.From the 1830s through 1866 the land was part of the cotton plantation known as Water Oak Plantation owned by Richard Bradford....
.