Wednesday’s debate at Dillard University will have an empty auditorium, but organizers will not say whether that is because one of the candidates for the Senate seat for Louisiana is David Duke.
“We just elected to have a closed production,” said Vicki Zimmerman, Raycom’s regional news director. Raycom Media is sponsoring the debate. When asked if Duke was the reason for the empty auditorium, Zimmerman replied, “I’m not going to elaborate any further than I already did.”
Many students at the historically black college were upset by the presence of the former Ku Klux Klan leader and are expected to protest outside the event.
The debate will feature Republicans Republicans John Kennedy, the state treasurer, and Reps. John Fleming and Charles Boustany Jr. and Democrats Foster Campbell and Caroline Fayard. Under Louisiana law, the two candidates who receive the most votes will continue on to a runoff election.
Ahead of the debate, Boustany’s campaign released a statement decrying Duke’s participation.
“David Duke is a total relic of the past,” said spokesman Jack Pandol. “He’s not representative of the Louisiana of today.”