Rep.Franklin, A B

House Member

Rep. Franklin, A B (D)
District# 34, Lake Charles

Contact Information

District Office
Legislative Assistant : Athena Woods
Email A B. Franklin
Phone: (337)491-2320
Fax: (337)491-2020
Address: 2808 E. Broad Street
Lake Charles, LA 70615
Map
Capitol House Switch Band: (225) 342-6945
Capitol House Fax: (225)342-8336

Profile

- District #: House District 1
- Party: Democrat
- Caucus Membership: Acadiana Delegation, Democratic Caucus, Louisiana Legislative Black Caucus, Louisiana Rural Caucus
- Occupation: Owner - A.B. Auto Sales & Action Plus Communications
- Education: W.O. Boston High School, 1967 graduate
- Spouse: Donna
- Year Elected: 2007
- Last Year Eligible(Term Limit): 2020
- 2007 Election
  In one of the more crowded primary races of the 2007 election cycle, seven candidates lined up to replace Guillory. Franklin and fellow Democrat Tony Guillory made the runoff with twenty-three and twenty-two percent of the vote respectively. Franklin won with 58% of the vote.

District Profile

Registered Voters by Parish: Calcasieu 100.0%
Municipalities/Communities Represented: Lake Charles
- Louisiana Map
- District Map
- Metro Map
Economic: District 34 is comprised of the northern and eastern parts of Lake Charles. Estimated median income and house values here are lower than the Louisiana average. About a quarter of the residents lived below the poverty level. Employment comes from the port of Lake Charles, PPG Industries, ConocoPhillips and Citgo. The gaming industry, with two boats at the Isle of Capri, and the new L’Auberge du Lac are large employers, as well as the construction business and the service industry. Hurricane Rita did severe damage to the district, but 80% has been restored. Northrup Grumman is a major tenant in the Chennault Industrial Airpark as is Aeroframe Services, Louisiana Millwork and Million Air charter operations.

Social: District 34 is overwhelmingly African-American, but Lake Charles as a whole is evenly split. Crime is down substantially in the district with a new police chief on board

Political: Over 70% of the registered voters in District 34 are Democratic. Organized labor, with 10 unions active in industries in District 34, is a strong element in the local economy.

Biography

- A former Lake Charles City Councilman, Franklin is a team player who wants to improve quality of life in Louisiana and keep qualified individuals from moving somewhere else. He supports full and complete disclosure of campaign finances for elected officials. He intends to meet with plant owners in his district on ways to improve the environment and then take the results to Washington, D.C. for review. He wants to increase the state funding for community centers and other nonprofit organizations for children at risk.
- He supports keeping the charity hospital system intact and increasing the number of health care clinics to improve preventive care and reduce the overall cost of health-care for the state.
- He would like to see the I-10 bridge in his district replaced with one which will help develop areas north of the Calcasieu River. Hoffmann will work to greatly increase funding for K-12 education and enlarge the state funds assigned for capital improvement such as buildings and infrastructure. He will also support increasing funding for Head Start programs and providing state funding for tax incentives and financial aid to make college more affordable for all Louisianans. He would also like to increase funding for improvements to Louisiana’s power generating and transmission facilities and promote increased use of alternative technology. Look for him to work to increase the taxes on alcohol and cigarettes greatly.