Henson Moore - in Congress

In Congress

Moore was initially elected to Congress on November 5, 1974, during mid-term elections which produced huge Democratic gains in both houses of Congress. He succeeded John Robert Rarick of St. Francisville in West Feliciana Parish north of Baton Rouge. Rarick, a conservative at odds with his national party leadership, had lost the Democratic primary to Jeff LaCaze, a young liberal broadcaster who declared himself a "national Democrat". Moore and LaCaze squared off in the general election. Because Moore's margin over LaCaze was only 14 votes (61,034 to 61,020) and a voting machine had malfunctioned, a special election rematch was directed by the Louisiana courts.

Moore won the special election held in January 1975 with a decisive 74,802 votes (54.1 percent) to LaCaze's 63,366 ballots (45.9 percent). Moore gained 13,768 votes in the second election, while LaCaze netted only an additional 2,346 ballots. Moore fared best in Washington Parish and his parish of residence, East Baton Rouge. He also carried that part of Livingston Parish within the district as well as Tangipahoa Parish. He lost in East Feliciana, St. Helena, and West Feliciana parishes. West Feliciana had been the only parish to support George McGovern for president in 1972. Moore's share of the vote in West Feliciana, a heavily African-American region, was 32.4 percent.

In 1976, Moore faced a spirited Democratic challenger in liberal State Senator J.D. DeBlieux (1912–2005) of Baton Rouge, who had opposed the late Senator Allen J. Ellender in the 1966 Democratic primary. Moore polled 99,780 (65.2 percent) to DeBlieux's 53,212 (34.8 percent). Moore won most of the traditionally Democratic parishes in the district despite the popularity of the Jimmy Carter-Walter Mondale ticket. For the remainder of his tenure in the House, Moore did not face strong challenges from the Democrats.

In Congress, Moore compiled a conservative voting record.