Running For Governor At 37
In 1979, Hardy ran for governor. Endorsed by former Governor John McKeithen, he carried eighteen parishes in the nonpartisan blanket primary, but he missed securing a general election berth by 4 percentage points. Hardy finished in fourth place with 227,026 votes (16.6 percent). In a disputed third place was outgoing Lieutenant Governor James E. "Jimmy" Fitzmorris, Jr., of New Orleans, with 280,760 (20.6 percent). The general election would feature Republican David C. Treen of Jefferson Parish, with 297,674 (21.8 percent), and Louisiana Public Service Commissioner Louis J. Lambert of Ascension Parish, with 283,277 (20.7 percent). Hardy hence lost a general election slot by some 56,000 votes. Though he was still a Democrat, Hardy endorsed Treen. Thereafter, Treen, who narrowly defeated Lambert in the general election, appointed Hardy as Louisiana's secretary of transportation. While there, he supervised the spending of a record $2 billion on highways. When Hardy resigned the transportation post, Treen elevated the assistant secretary, Tom Colten, to the top position. Colten's tenure was one of the longest in the position: he served until his retirement in 1993.
When Hardy vacated the secretary of state's position, the two top votegetters, Sandra Thompson, director of the Atchafalaya Basin Culture, Recreation, and Tourism project, and State Senator James H. "Jim" Brown of Ferriday, went into a general election showdown. Brown emerged a narrow winner.
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