Candidates brawl in first debate
by Claire Taylor - The Daily Advertiser (excerpt)

State Rep. Rickey Hardy touted his successes in the state Legislature, like successfully passing a law that requires student athletes to maintain a C average, while challenger Vincent Pierre criticized Hardy, mostly for being absent or voting too often with Gov. Bobby Jindal, during a debate Monday afternoon.

The two candidates for House District 44 met for the contest's first political debate at UL's Burke-Hawthorne Hall. Hardy and Pierre, both Democrats from Lafayette, emerged from a three-person field of candidates in October to face each other in a runoff Saturday for the North Lafayette House district that Pierre's uncle, Wilfred Pierre, held for many years.

In the debate, sponsored by the UL chapters of the Society Professional Journalists and the Political Science Association, Hardy and Pierre faced questions from a panel of local journalists.