When the next St. Tammany Parish Council is sworn in early next year, it will be a vastly different one, with nine of the 14 members new to the office.
The dramatic change follows a fall election season that saw multiple veteran council members opt to not seek reelection, while others were defeated at the polls.
On Saturday, voters decided four final runoffs for council seats, electing Larry Rolling, Kathy Seiden, Pat Phillips, and David Cougle. All are Republicans.
Here’s a look at the races:
District 2
Larry Rolling beat incumbent David Fitzgerald to claim the Covington-area District 2 seat.
Complete but unofficial returns showed Rolling winning with 55% of the vote. Turnout was 24%.
David Fitzgerald, left, and Larry Rolling, right, are in a Nov. 18 runoff for the St. Tammany Parish Council's District 2 seat.
Rolling, 61, a Covington City Council member, led Fitzgerald during the Oct. 14 primary and hoped to build on that lead to knock Fitzgerald, who is finishing his first complete term, out of office.
Managing residential growth was the big issue in the campaign, with both candidates stressing smart growth and maintaining the district’s small-town integrity.
District 4
Kathy Seiden beat Keith Dennis to take the open Madisonville area District 4 seat.
Complete but unofficial returns showed Seiden winning 54% of the vote. Turnout was 23%.
Keith Dennis, left, and Kathy Seiden, right, are in a Nov. 18 runoff for the District 4 seat on the St. Tammany Parish Council
Council member Mike Lorino did not seek reelection and the open seat attracted four candidates in the primary.
Seiden, 52, led voting in October and pushed a pro-business campaign, arguing that growing local businesses would bring new jobs to the parish.
Dennis, 65, a Madisonville town council member, stressed his experience in government.
District 5
Pat Phillips beat Doug Ferrer to claim the open Covington area District 5 seat. Phillps and Ferrer had risen to the top of the voting during the Oct. 14 primary, knocking off incumbent Rykert Toledano along the way.
Complete but unofficial returns showed Phillips winning with 59% of the vote. Voter turnout was 24%.
Doug Ferrer, left, and Pat Phillips, right, are in a Nov. 18 runoff for the District 5 seat on the St. Tammany Parish Council
During the campaign, Phillips, 69, a retired Marine pilot, stressed his military service and said he wanted to continue serving the community as a council member.
Ferrer, 61, a retired businessman, stressed his business experience and said it would give him the edge in tackling the problems facing the parish council.
District 9
David Cougle beat incumbent Mike Smith for the Slidell-area District 9 seat.
Complete but unofficial returns showed Cougle winning with 67% of the vote. Voter turnout was 26%.
Cougle, 44, led in the primary to push Smith, 64, into a runoff.
David Cougle, left, and Mike Smith, right, are in a Nov. 18 runoff for the District 9 seat on the St. Tammany Parish Council
Both candidates pointed to improving water quality in eastern St. Tammany as the district’s biggest issue.
Smith, a teacher at Northshore High School, said he plans to retire at the end of this school year and that being a council member is really a full-time job.
Cougle is an attorney.
