Long, Huey P. (1893–1935)

THE LIFE OF Huey P. Long cast a long political shadow on Louisiana and national politics during the 20th century. Born into a large family in the poor rural parish of Winnfield, Louisiana, Long was a clever student, but left high school without graduating. Following school he worked at a number of occupations, including traveling salesman, as he searched for a role in life. Long's talents eventually led him to the law, and he intermittently attended Louisiana State University, the University of Oklahoma School Of Law in Norman, and Tulane University Law School in New Orleans. After only one year at Tulane, he took the Louisiana Bar examination in 1915 and passed. Long practiced law for the following 10 years, and gained a reputation as a lawyer who would take on the large corporations, including the powerful Standard Oil Company.

His anticorporate stance gave him name recognition and aided his election, in 1918, to the Louisiana Railroad Commission, which became the Louisiana Public Service Commission in 1921. As a commissioner, Long learned the political techniques that would serve his later career. He actively self-promoted, and developed an energetic personal campaign style that attracted wide audiences. His rhetoric was packed with populist overtones that decried those in power, either in government or in the corporations. In 1922, Long took on the Cumberland Telephone Company for unfair rate increases, and won substantial damages for the company's customers. He later enhanced his legal reputation by making a successful defense of this judgment before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Although Long ran unsuccessfully for governor in 1924, he learned from the experience and established in the process a popular base which he cultivated over the next four years in preparation for the 1928 campaign. He also created the Huey Long image with his trademark white linen suit, and strident speeches that labeled his opponents as tools of the rich and big business. As a campaign slogan he adopted, for his own devices, William Jennings Bryan's phrase: “everyman a king, but no one wears a crown.” He chipped away at the old political guard who had kept the poor out of the political process, and it was among the disaffected that Long found the votes that would put him in office. He bridged a number of social divides within the state, and won the governorship by the largest margin in Louisiana history.

From his position as Louisiana governor, Long rebuilt the state patronage system in his own image. He purged the old structure, and packed the state bureaucracy with his own supporters. Through a system of financial kickbacks Long's political machine reaped the rewards of office. His political agenda included massive statewide building programs and numerous social reforms such as free textbooks, literacy programs, and cheap utilities. His aggressive style drove pet programs through the legislature that made him a hero to the poor rural population who saw him as a defender of their interests. Long's manipulations did produce enemies, and there was a drive to impeach him in 1929. However, he responded with a campaign of persuasion and arm-twisting in the Louisiana Senate that produced enough votes to squash this threat. To counter bad press reports, Long even launched his own newspaper, the Louisiana Progress, to ensure his achievements reached the public in the best light.

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