Lelon Kenney
| Lelon Luther Kenney | |
 | |
Louisiana State Representative
for District 20 (Caldwell, Catahoula, Franklin, LaSalle, and Tensas parishes) | |
| In office January 1996 – January 2008 | |
| Preceded by | Noble Ellington |
|---|---|
| Succeeded by | Noble Ellington |
| Born | March 25, 1935 |
| Died | June 18, 2018 (aged 83) Fayetteville, North Carolina |
| Resting place | Mount Pleasant Cemetery in Caldwell Parish |
| Political party | Democrat |
| Spouse(s) | Loretta Kenney (deceased) |
| Children | Pamela Kay Kenney (deceased) Sherry Kenney |
| Residence | Columbia, Caldwell Parish |
| Occupation | Farmer |
| Religion | Southern Baptist |
Lelon Luther Kenney (March 25, 1935[1] – June 18, 2018),[2] was a Democrat farmer and civic figure from Caldwell Parish in northeastern Louisiana, who represented District 20 in the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1996 to 2008, during the administrations of Governors Mike Foster and Kathleen Blanco. He was preceded and succeeded in his House seat by Democrat (later Republican) Noble Ellington from Winnsboro in Franklin Parish.[3]
Kenney was a long-time member of the Louisiana Farm Bureau, the Caldwell Parish Industrial Board, and the Bayou De Chene Reservoir Commission, of which he was the chairman at the time of his death. He was also chairman of the Homeland Bank Board of Directors. Prior to his legislative tenure, he was an elected member of the Caldwell Parish School Board and the Caldwell Parish Police Jury, the parish governing body. In the legislature, he served on the Education, Environmental Quality Committee, Agriculture, and Forestry committees.[4]
Kenney first ran for House District 20 in the 1987 primary but finished with only 3.45 percent of the vote.[5] The district includes all or portions of Caldwell, Franklin, Catahoula, LaSalle, and Tensas parishes in the northeastern section of Louisiana. In the nonpartisan blanket primary in October 1995, in which five Democratic candidates sought the position, Kenney finished second to fellow Democrat, Billy Wayne Cobb (born November 23, 1946) of Winnsboro, 4,194 (23 percent) to 5,632 (32 percent). In the ensuing runoff election in November, Kenney defeated Cobb, 9,150 (53 percent) to 8,217 (47 percent). Kenney won election in 1999 over fellow Democrat Roger Edward Beall (born July 11, 1939) of Winnsboro, 9,315 (69 percent) to 4,269 (31 percent). In 2003, after finishing with 46 percent of the ballots cast in the first round of voting, Kenney won a lopsided runoff contest with former opponent Roger Beall, 8,686 (63 percent) to 5,064 (37 percent).[6]
Kenney was term-limited in the legislative primary held on October 20, 2007. The seat is currently held by the Republican Steve Pylant, a former sheriff of Franklin Parish, who is not a candidate for a third term in the 2019 state election.
The son of Bud and Lucille Kenney, Lelon Kenney and his wife, Loretta, had two daughters, Pamela Kay Kenney (1959-2000) and Sherry Kenney, who survives her father. He died at the age of eighty-three. A Southern Baptist, he is interred at Mount Pleasant Cemetery in Caldwell Parish.[4]
References
- ↑ Lelon Kenney. Mylife.com. Retrieved on June 24, 2018.
- ↑ Lelon Kenney. Monroe News Star (June 23, 2018). Retrieved on June 24, 2018.
- ↑ Historial Membership of Louisiana House of Representatives, 1812-2020. House.louisiana.gov. Retrieved on June 24, 2018.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Obituary of Lelon Kenney. Riser Funeral Home (June 22, 2018). Retrieved on June 26, 2018.
- ↑ Election Returns. Louisiana Secretary of State (October 24, 1987). Retrieved on November 5, 2018.
- ↑ Election Returns. Louisiana Secretary of State (November 15, 2003). Retrieved on June 24, 2018.