1998 Political Candidacies
In the August 1998 primary, Looper sought the Republican nominations for both the Tennessee's 6th congressional district and the Tennessee State Senate. He failed in his quest for the Congressional nomination, finishing third in a field of four, but won the state senate nomination by default, as he was the only Republican candidate on the ballot. This set up his campaign against incumbent Democratic state senator Tommy Burks.
Burks had represented Putnam County in the state legislature for 28 years, including four two-year terms in the Tennessee House of Representatives and five four-year terms in the Tennessee State Senate. A farmer and an old-style conservative Southern Democrat, he was popular in his district. He was expected to win re-election easily in 1998.
Read more about this topic: Byron Looper
Famous quotes containing the word political:
“I would like you to understand completely, also emotionally, that I’m a political detainee and will be a political prisoner, that I have nothing now or in the future to be ashamed of in this situation. That, at bottom, I myself have in a certain sense asked for this detention and this sentence, because I’ve always refused to change my opinion, for which I would be willing to give my life and not just remain in prison. That therefore I can only be tranquil and content with myself.”
—Antonio Gramsci (1891–1937)