BR Court Race Heats Up (FIELDS VS. GUIDRY)
by JOE GYAN JR. - Advocate (excerpt)

Campaign signs for incumbent state appeals court Judge John Michael Guidry and challenger Wilson Fields, a state district court judge, also are signs of an intriguing race for the Baton Rouge appellate court. Guidry was a state senator in October 1997 when he was elected to the 1st Circuit Court of Appeal. Two months later, Fields’ brother, Cleo Fields, was elected to the Senate to finish Guidry’s term.

Qualifying for the Oct. 2 primary election is July 7-9. Any runoff would be Nov. 2. Guidry and Wilson Fields — a former Baton Rouge metro councilman and former state senator — are Democrats.

Guidry pledged to run a grass-roots campaign and tout his record as a “fair and honest’’ jurist. “Ultimately, that’s who the seat belongs to — the people. It’s not my seat,’’ he stressed. The seat — the 2nd District, Subdistrict 2, Division D — covers an inner-city part of Baton Rouge and was created by the Legislature to improve the chances of minority candidates in gaining a spot on the 1st Circuit.