NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Gov.-elect John Bel Edwards has picked seven people to lead his transition into the governor's office.
The Democrat has fewer than two months to get ready to take over the job from term-limited Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal.
Leading the transition is Ben Nevers, a term-limited state senator who ran a pro-Edwards PAC. Nevers will become chief of staff when Edwards takes office.
Helping him will be: Laura Leach, who co-owns a Lake Charles-based oil company and has long been involved in Louisiana Democratic politics; Monroe Mayor Jamie Mayo; Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand, a Republican who supported Edwards during his campaign; state Sen. Sharon Weston Broome of Baton Rouge; Taylor Townsend, a former state lawmaker and trial lawyer from Natchitoches; and Richard Lipsey, a Baton Rouge businessmen.
– by AP Reporter Melinda Deslatte
