Shawn Wilson, former DOTD Secretary, first Democrat to join Louisiana gubernatorial race

BATON ROUGE – Former head of the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development Shawn Wilson has announced his campaign for Louisiana governor, the first Democrat to do so. 

Wilson’s social media were adjusted Monday morning reflecting his candidacy, as well as the creation of a Facebook page titled “Shawn Wilson for Governor.”

Wilson joins the race along with Republicans Attorney General Jeff Landry, State Treasurer John Schroeder, State Representative Richard Nelson, and State Senator Sharon Hewitt, as well as Independent Hunter Lundy.

Read the statement from Wilson’s campaign announcement here:

Today, Shawn Wilson, the former Secretary of the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD) announced his campaign for Governor. Shawn transformed the agency to be more collaborative and efficient at leveraging resources and delivering services – resulting in groundbreakings on long overdue improvements to our roadways, railways, ports, and bridges. Under his leadership, Louisiana is currently making the largest infrastructure investment in state history. Major investments are underway in every corner of the state. This success and the approach he uses has best prepared him to lead the state for the next four years.

“In the simplest of terms, a bridge is a pathway over an obstacle. Louisiana has its fair share of obstacles standing between where we are today and the state that we can be tomorrow, and the only way we’ll get to the other side is if we have leaders who will build bridges; not burn them, ” said Shawn. “I’ve spent my career bringing people together to tackle tough issues for Louisiana. I’ve worked for four different governors for over 25 years. I know the challenges our state is facing, and I know what it’ll take to overcome them. Louisiana needs a Governor that’ll build bridges; not burn them. That’s the kind of leader I’ve been, and that’s exactly the kind of Governor I promise to be. My family and I look forward to hitting the campaign trail and earning every vote.”