Troy Carter, a Democrat who served in the Louisiana Legislature during one of Edwards' terms, described the former governor as “just someone that you could never question his love of the people of Louisiana.” The mourners were diverse, including people who never met Edwards personally, lawmakers, former elected officials and his closest political allies. But after an initial crowd of a few hundred cycled past the casket, visitors thinned to a steady trickle. He arrived four hours before the visitation event was open to the public, expecting long lines and a packed mass of people waiting to get in. A registered Republican, Naquin wore an Edwards campaign T-shirt and a Trump 2020 ballcap. Naquin visually demonstrated the unusual coalitions of support Edwards built during his lifetime. He wasn't just a politician,” said Wilfred Naquin, 73, a retired firefighter who lives an hour away in Independence. “He was the best governor in my lifetime. “He related to his constituents.”Įdwards died Monday of respiratory problems at his home in Gonzales, a suburb of Baton Rouge, at age 93.
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He helped a lot of poor people,” she said. The history of this state cannot be told without telling the story of Edwin Edwards."Īngela Smothers, 65, a retired substitute teacher, also traveled the 80 miles (128.75 kilometers) from New Orleans to the state’s capital city to see the Democratic former governor one last time.
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“You cannot study Louisiana politics without studying Edwin Edwards, the good, the bad, the indifferent. “I couldn’t miss it,” said Kevin Hagan, 30, a one-time political science student who drove from New Orleans for Edwards' public memorial event.