BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Kip Holden has secured a third-term as East Baton Rouge Mayor-President.
Holden celebrated his Tuesday victory just moments after his most well-financed opponent, Councilman Mike Walker, could be seen conceding the race on TVs in the room.
With 97 percent of precincts reporting, Holden had 60 percent of the vote, according to unofficial returns from the Louisiana Secretary of State's Office.
The Advocate (http://bit.ly/SM75AX ) reports Walker took second place with 34 percent of the vote. Businessman Gordon Mese came in third with 3 percent and attorney Steve Myers finished with 2 percent.
Holden was elected as the parish's first black mayor-president in 2004, when he defeated incumbent Bobby Simpson with 54 percent of the vote. He made history again in 2008, winning re-election with 71 percent of the vote.
___
Information from: The Advocate, http://theadvocate.com
