Neil Riser
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Hartwell Neil Riser, Jr., known as Neil Riser (born 1962),[1] is a funeral home owner in tiny Columbia, the seat of Caldwell Parish in northeastern Louisiana, who is a Republican member of the Louisiana State Senate. Riser succeeded outgoing Democratic State Senator Noble Ellington on January 14, 2008. Riser is the first Republican in modern times to have won this Senate seat. John Henry Baker of Delhi was the first Republican to have sought the seat -- in the general election held on February 1, 1972, but Baker fell well short of victory. Ellington, from Winnsboro, the seat of Franklin Parish, meanwhile, at the age of sixty-five, became a freshman member of the Louisiana House of Representatives. However, former Senator Ellington had also served in the House earlier, from 1988-1996.
To win his Senate seat, Riser defeated the Democratic former State Representative Bryant O. Hammett, Jr., of Ferriday in Concordia Parish, located adjacent to the Mississippi River in eastern Louisiana. Hammett (born 1955) is the outgoing secretary of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries under Governor Kathleen Babineaux Blanco, who did not seek reelection. Hammett also operates his own engineering company in Ferriday.[2]
Riser polled 15,622 votes (55 percent) to Hammett's 12,817 ballots (45 percent). District 32 includes all of Catahoula, Concordia, Caldwell, Franklin, La Salle, and West Feliciana parishes and portions of Avoyelles, Ouachita, Rapides, and Richland parishes. [3]
In the primary, Riser had polled 49 percent of the vote and fell just short of an outright victory.[4] Riser attributed his success to "a good grass-roots system that helped us. We did it one vote at a time. . . . We truly were able to win against an embedded political system."[5]
Riser promised to file legislation to roll back the state income tax hike that became law when voters approved the Stelly Plan, named for former independent State Representative Victor Stelly of Lake Charles. Riser maintains that voters were misled when they ratified Stelly's proposal to cut certain taxes and raise others.[6]
Riser said that he will "work hand-in-hand (with Governor Bobby Jindal) to move our state and our region forward." Riser added that he is determined to reduce the tax burden on businesses and families. His website stresses education, health-care reform, highway expansion, traditional values, and Second Amendment rights.[7] He advertised widely on the radio program of conservative talk show host Moon Griffon of Monroe, who urged listeners to support Riser.[8] Riser also obtained the support of former congressional candidate Lee Fletcher of Monroe, who declared that Riser is "solid as a rock and has the best background to represent real change" in Baton Rouge.[9].
Riser was born to Hartwell Riser, Sr. (1934-1985), and the former Lillian Gore (born 1937), since Lillian R. Gentry of Monroe, the wife of Herschel Gentry, Jr. He graduated from Caldwell Parish High School in Columbia in1980.[10] Columbia, located south of Monroe in northeastern Louisiana, was the home of Governor John McKeithen (1918-1999) and Secretary of State W. Fox McKeithen (1946-2005).
In 1984, Riser earned a bachelor of science degree in business management from the University of Louisiana at Monroe (then Northeast Louisiana University). He is president and owner of Riser Funeral Homes in Caldwell and La Salle parishes. The Riser family has operated the funeral home since 1934. He also serves as a board member of Caldwell Bank and Trust in Columbia. He is a past president of Pelican State Life Insurance Company. He was previously in the timber business, having worked in logging at the age of fourteen.[11]
Riser is married to the former Vicki Smith, the daughter of Glen and Carolyn Smith of the Fort Necessity community in Franklin Parish. She teaches at River Oaks High School in Monroe. The couple has two daughters, Emilie (born 1989) and Allison (born 1994).[12]
Riser served on the Republican State Central Committee from 1996-2000.
[edit] References
- ^ Intelius People Search - Public Records, Background Checks & More
- ^ The News Star - www.thenewsstar.com - Monroe, LA
- ^ Louisiana Secretary of State-Election Results by Parish Inquiry
- ^ Louisiana Secretary of State-Multi-Parish Elections Inquiry
- ^ The News Star - www.thenewsstar.com - Monroe, LA
- ^ The Ouachita Citizen: News: Riser announces candidacy for Senate District 32
- ^ Neil Riser for State Senate
- ^ The Moon Griffon Show
- ^ Louisiana News Link: Endorsement: Neil Riser Is Heads And Shoulders Better Than Bryant Hammett
- ^ Neil Riser for State Senate
- ^ http://www.neilriser.com/; http://www.ouachitacitizen.com/news.php?id=815
- ^ Neil Riser for State Senate
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