U.S. Rep. Cleo Fields campaigned and earned the title of congressman twice in his career. And he’s lost the title twice.
Neither time did Fields go to Washington, D.C., with the intention of being a short-term player in the U.S. House of Representatives. With many years of service by the time his second congressional tenure ends Jan. 3, Fields will have served longer than a number of congressional representatives who had short terms, some for as little as one day but far from the likes of West Virginia Sen. Robert Byrd, who was in the U.S. Senate for more than 51 years.
Fields isn’t packing up and returning home because he wants to. Gov. Jeff Landry and the Louisiana Legislature eliminated the sixth congressional district that he was duly elected to serve in favor of a Republican-favorable district that would’ve been tough for Fields to win. The two-time congressman officially announced days ago that he will not seek reelection to Congress. Instead, he will seek the state Senate seat he left to return to Congress.
Times-Picayune columnist Will Sutton on Thursday, September 12, 2019.
STAFF PHOTO BY CHRIS GRANGER
In a most unfortunate twist of fate, the seat is open because his successor, state Sen. Larry Selders, died earlier this month. Selders served about five years in the State House and won a special election to finish the balance of Fields’ term.
Fields first won the same Senate seat in 1988 as a 24-year-old activist outsider, defeating a longtime incumbent. He’s held onto the seat since — except for the two times when he was elected to Congress. Each time he was elected to a seat created by the state Legislature in response to calls for greater representation of Black voters.
He’s represented two different congressional districts, the 4th and the 6th, based on political district boundaries drawn at the time. Both were centered in Baton Rouge. He’s represented Baton Rouge and other communities as a senator three times, each time with a Baton Rouge center.
If Fields is elected to fill Selders’ unexpired term, it would be the fourth time he’s been elected to the state Senate — and he’ll quite likely run for a full term next fall.
U.S. Rep. Cleo Fields meets a supporter after announcing his decision to run for 14th Senatorial District seat on Friday, July 24, 2026 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Staff photo by Michael Johnson
STAFF PHOTO BY MICHAEL JOHNSON
Sometimes congressional representatives are forced to pack their Washington belongings and head home when district boundaries are changed. It doesn’t feel good.
“Am I disappointed?” Fields asked rhetorically. “Of course.”
“It’s nothing I’m unfamiliar with. We’ve been here before. We were very hopeful.” He, I and others thought we were on our way to more equal representation in Louisiana.
In late April, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in that geographic boundaries for political subdivisions cannot be drawn based on race but they can be drawn based on politics. In effect, that was the end of the Voting Rights Act Section 2, which has provided protections against voting discrimination while providing more representation opportunities for Blacks and other underrepresented groups.
That was the death of Fields’ district.
Republican Landry and a Republican Legislature created the 6th District that Democrat Fields represents until Jan. 3. In May, after the high court ruling, and before Fields had completed 18 months of the term, the same governor and the Legislature eliminated the district.
On Thursday afternoon, he told me he’s looking at one thing at a time. He doesn’t know whether anyone else will jump into the race, but he’s making it clear that he wants the seat. “It is not my seat,” he told me. “I’m running for the seat. I don’t own it.”
When Fields became a congressman this time, Selders ran for the rest of his unexpired Senate term. Fields had known Selders for more than 20 years, and he was excited to see Selders succeed him. Now Fields is running to fill the balance of Selders’ unexpired term.
This is not the way Fields would have chosen to have this play out. If it were up to him, he’d be staying in Congress, gaining more seniority, fighting for his district and all of Louisiana.
Now he wants to return to the Louisiana Capitol as the senator with the most seniority
All of Louisiana should be as disappointed as Fields is about this turn of events. All of us should want Fields in Congress, where he belongs and where we’d have the representation we deserve.
Though Fields has to earn the state Senate seat he left, many in his district, in the Capitol and across the state will welcome the congressman back home as a senator.