22 Facts About Willie Mount

Willie Landry Mount was born on August 25,1949 and is an American politician from Louisiana who served as a Democratic member of the Louisiana State Senate from 2000 to 2012.

Willie Mount represented District 27, which includes parts of her native Lake Charles and the surrounding cities of Sulphur and Westlake.

From 1993 to 1999, Mount was the first woman to serve as the mayor of Lake Charles.

Willie Mount was a candidate in the 2004 US House of Representatives election for Louisiana's 7th congressional district.

Willie Mount was defeated by Republican Charles Boustany in a contested general election campaign that received national attention.

In 1974, Willie Mount obtained a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from McNeese State University in Lake Charles.

Willie Mount owned a small business and worked as a real estate agent and pharmaceutical representative for Lederle Laboratories.

Willie Mount had been active in community work through organizations such as the Junior League of Lake Charles, and ran for mayor of Lake Charles in 1993.

Willie Mount co-sponsored the building of an Amtrak station, modeled after an older station that had been destroyed in a fire.

Willie Mount was responsible for passing these term limits as an amendment to the Louisiana Constitution, as SB 232 on November 4,2008.

Willie Mount sponsored legislation to merge New Orleans criminal and civil district courts, create a childhood and family learning center, couple the opening of new hospice care providers with inspections of existing ones, allow police to suspend driver's licenses of teenagers with problems at school, and create a state-run internet database providing information on the quality of health care providers.

Willie Mount was responsible for legislation that made Louisiana water fluoridation mandatory, and, in her capacity as chair of the Senate Health committee, Willie Mount in 2008 declared major Louisiana health care reform unlikely without prior federal reform.

Willie Mount is a member of a number of boards and charitable organisations and provides an annual compilation of "Louisiana positives" about Louisiana's standing in national ratings.

Willie Mount ran for Congress in 2004 to succeed Chris John, who instead ran for the United States Senate but lost to Republican David Vitter.

Willie Mount positioned herself as a Conservative Democrat who supported balanced budgets and conservative social views, emphasizing job creation, health care and her opposition to offshoring.

Willie Mount criticized Boustany for favoring the privatization of social security, an unpopular position in Louisiana, and as distant from the interests of individual voters.

Willie Mount received endorsements from US Senator John Breaux, who had represented the 7th district for over fourteen years, and Governor Kathleen Blanco.

Willie Mount was not endorsed by Democratic primary opponent Don Cravins, who complained about the state Democratic Party's endorsement of Willie Mount in a partially party funded mailer that excluded him and which he believed contributed to his narrow loss.

Analysis of the race suggested that Willie Mount's defeat was helped by the open primary system that had the Democratic candidates work against each other and led to Cravin's conflict with the state Democratic Party which in turn led to suppressed voter turnout.

When Willie Mount left the Senate in 2012, she was succeeded by a Democrat-turned-Republican, former State Representative Ronnie Johns of Sulphur, who ran unopposed for the open seat.

In 2011, Willie Mount announced her candidacy for tax assessor of Calcasieu Parish.

Willie Mount was unopposed on October 4,2003, and October 20,2007, for her second and third term as state senator.