Louisiana Supreme Court won’t hear Caddo Sheriff’s race appeal. Whitehorn reacts

Makenzie Boucher, Shreveport Times
·1 min read
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The Louisiana Supreme Court has denied Henry Whitehorn's request for an appeal of the new election decision made by retired Louisiana Supreme Court Justice Joseph Bleich and Second Circuit Court of Appeals.

The denial comes two weeks after Whitehorn filed an application to the Louisiana Supreme Court to reverse the decision of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals.

The application came after three judges voted in favor of a new election for the Caddo Parish Sheriff's election.

On Nov. 18, Whitehorn and John Nickelson participated in the runoff election for Caddo Parish Sheriff which resulted in a one-vote margin. Whitehorn received 21,621 votes while Nickelson received 21,620.

A recount was performed Nov. 27 on the absentee ballots for the runoff due to the one-vote margin. The recount resulted in an additional three votes given to both candidates, ultimately leaving the outcome unchanged with Whitehorn ahead by one vote.

Shortly after the recount, Nickelson filed a lawsuit outlining a number of allegations of irregularities in votes during the runoff election.

On Dec. 5, Retired Louisiana Supreme Court Justice Joseph Bleich made a ruling ordering a new runoff election between Whitehorn and Nickelson.

Following that ruling Whitehorn filed an appeal, and it was heard on Monday, Dec. 11 in the Second Circuit Court of Appeals.

Just after 12 p.m. Dec. 12, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals released a decision, upholding the ruling made by Bleich.

More: Whitehorn files application to the Louisiana Supreme Court. Learn more about the case

Photo illustration of Henry Whitehorn, left, and John Nickelson.
Photo illustration of Henry Whitehorn, left, and John Nickelson.

Whitehorn's response to the denied appeal

Following the state Supreme Court’s denial Whitehorn released the following statement:

“The Louisiana Supreme Court has denied our request for an appeal and now a new election will have to take place for the Sheriff’s race. What this means is that John Nickelson, the Republican attorney with zero law enforcement experience, has successfully gotten an election overturned, and he did so by misleading the people of Caddo Parish. “He misled them into thinking two people voted twice for me.  But the facts are that the two people who voted twice were both registered republicans who served in leadership positions for the Republican Party.   “He also misled them into thinking there were people who cast votes under the names of dead people.  But the facts are that there were several individuals who freely, rightfully, and legally mailed in their ballots, but unfortunately, passed away before Election Day.   “Now, the people of Caddo Parish have a job to do.  We must send the message that we will not sit back and allow anyone to overturn an election simply because they are unhappy with the results.  I was always taught that the person with the most votes wins, even if that’s by a thousand votes or by one vote. One vote does matter, and he should not be given a redo just because he only lost by one.   “I won the Sheriff’s Race in the run-off on November 18, 2023.I won the Sheriff’s Race after a recount on November 27, 2023.I look forward to winning for the third time in a new election and becoming the next Sheriff of Caddo Parish.”

The new election will be during the presidential primary in March.

Makenzie Boucher is a reporter with the Shreveport Times. Contact her at mboucher@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: Louisiana Supreme Court denies Whitehorn's application. Here's what you need to know