Louisiana Democrats are expected to vote this weekend on whether to impeach their party’s president.
Katie Bernhardt sparked fury within her party after worsening statewide election losses last year after releasing a campaign video appearing to position herself for a run for governor.
She now faces a challenge from the state political group Blue Reboot, which organizes progressive candidates to run for state Central Committee.
The committee – which has 105 people trying to run for seats in the upcoming vote – is now trying to oust the mother of four and choose a new party chairman.
Explaining the decision against Bernhardt, Lynda Woolard, co-founder of Blue Reboot, said LA Illuminator: “We are in a deep hole from which we must have a grand coalition to get out.”
Louisiana Democrats are set to vote this weekend to remove state party chairwoman Katie Bernhardt (pictured) from office.
Woolard said the left-wing faction of the Louisiana Democratic Party is frustrated with an approach that isn’t working in the traditionally Republican state.
In particular, she said a lack of funding had crippled the party in recent years.
“People say, ‘I never hear from the Democratic Party until there’s a candidate who wants my vote,'” Woolard said.
=Bernhardt sparked fury within his party after compounding statewide election losses last year with a campaign video appearing to position himself for a run for governor.
“And it’s really hard to motivate voters when two weeks before an election they don’t know who you are and have never heard of you before.”
The action against Bernhardt was fueled by their crushing defeats in the 2023 national elections.
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Shawn Wilson was easily defeated by Republican Jeff Landry, and Democrats lost every statewide election.
The GOP also now has a supermajority in the state legislature after Democrats’ significant defeat.
While chair of the state DNC, she sparked backlash last year with her own bid for the governor’s mansion — with many in her party believing her role was to promote other Democrats, not herself.
Bernhardt sparked backlash by teasing her own gubernatorial bid in a political ad last year, in which she pledged to put Louisiana above “national politics.”
The committee is now trying to oust the mother and choose a new party president
Some members of his party have criticized Bernhardt. She is photographed with her children
Katie Bernhardt is pictured with her husband John Fonseca Jr
She fired a shotgun and questioned how she would put Louisiana above national politics, before ending speculation about jumping into the race soon after amid criticism.
“I am not running for governor or anything else at this time,” Bernhardt said in a statement at the time. We are working to rebuild the Louisiana Democratic Party, which starts with putting forward strong, competent candidates for statewide office.
Among her critics was Democratic Rep. Travis Johnson, the party’s vice chair, who criticized her for “self-promotion.”
“The Louisiana Democratic Party is at a standstill because its leader is not engaged,” Johnson said at the time.
Bernhardt’s critics also reportedly seek to increase diversity within the state’s Democratic Party, with white Democrats becoming almost non-existent in Louisiana.
Although her eventual ouster hinges on this weekend’s vote, she already faces challenges.
Former state Rep. Randal Gaines, who currently serves on the Democratic National Committee, announced his challenge, and LA Illuminator said Civil Service Commissioner Davante Lewis is also considering running.
Lewis added that attracting new voters will be key if Democrats are to have a chance.
“One of the challenges we’ve seen is that the largest portion of voters are not white moderates, but rather nonvoters,” Lewis said.
“There is a significant opportunity for the Democratic Party to not get carried away with the current makeup of the pie, but to grow the pie.”