Claire Jones David Bruce Vitter Political party affiliation: Republican Age: 52 Name of spouse: wife- Wendy Baldwin

Vitter Current Residence: Metairie, Louisiana Education: De La Salle High School, Harvard College (A.B.), Oxford University (B.A.), Tulane Law School (J.D.) Children: Sophie Vitter, Lise Vitter, Airey Vitter, Jack Vitter Occupation: Attorney Religious affiliation: Roman Catholic Biography: David was born in New Orleans, Louisiana on May 3, 1961. His parents, Audrey Malvina St. Raymond and Albert Leopold Vitter, were both New Orleans natives as well. His father was a petroleum engineer and his mother was a homemaker with a social work degree. Both were not very politically minded, very religious, and big on work ethic. Growing up, Vitter worked for Blaine Kern Studios, the Mardi Gras float builders. He graduated from De La Salle High School in 1979, where he played first clarinet in the school band. Then, Vitter received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Harvard College in 1983, a Bachelors degree from Oxford University in 1985 where he was recognized as a Rhodes Scholar, and a Juris Doctor degree from Tulane University Law School in New Orleans in 1988. Vitter held many jobs working through college because his parents wanted him to value the worth of a dollar. Vitter began his career as a lawyer and adjunct law professor at both Tulane and Loyola University New Orleans. Vitter was a member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1992-1999. In 2000 and 2002, Vitter won reelection with over 80% of the vote. Vitter was preparing to run for governor in 2003, but dropped out of the race after Louisiana Weekly ran a story about his alleged relationship with a prostitute. In 2004, Vitter ran to replace Democrat John Breaux in the U.S. Senate and became the first Republican in Louisiana to be popularly elected as a U.S. Senator. During the campaign, Vitter was accused again by a member of the Louisiana Republican State Central Committee of having had a lengthy affair with a prostitute in New Orleans. Vitter responded that the allegation was untrue. Vitter remained a U.S. Senator and won reelection in 2010. Vitter has identified himself as a political conservative throughout his Senate career, having served on the Committee on Armed Services, the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, the Committee on Environment and Public Works, and the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship.

Outline of Electoral History: Louisiana 1st District United States Congressional Election David Vitter David C. Treen Louisiana United States Senatorial Election David Vitter Chris John John Neely Kennedy Arthur Morrell Richard Fontanesi R.A. Galan Sam Melton Louisiana United States Senatorial Election David Vitter Charlie Melancon Randall T. Hayes 1999

Republican Democrat 2004 Republican Democrat Democrat Democrat Independent Independent Democrat 2010 Republican Democrat Libertarian

51% 49%

51% 29% 15% 3% 1% 1% 1%

57% 38% 1%

Candidate Strengths and Weaknesses: Vitter, like all politicians, has many strengths and weaknesses I would need to address for the 2016 election. One major image weakness is the 2007 D.C. Madam scandal, when Vitter was reported through public records using the infamous D.C. prostitution service, D.C. Madam. After the incident, Vitter and his campaign adopted a very out of sight, out of mind approach in the 2010 election using limited robo-calls and mild social media use, which I believe was a mistake. I think I would have used a more honest campaign strategy to give voters an image that Vitter admits his mistakes and owns up to them. I would use a more down-to-earth campaign, using family aspects to recreate Vitters image as a father and a husband. In one of Melancon's attack ads against Vitter in the 2010 election, he describes Vitter as a "disgraced Senator, "which is why he is in dire need of an image transformation. Vitter's vanishing act from public view has been labeled "pulling a Vitter," when his campaign used very limited outreach during the 2010 election. Campaign efforts solely banked on Republican supporters and large funding, which I believe was not the appropriate response. Vitter's campaign should have maximized his public outreach, showing citizens he is still here to serve Louisiana no matter what is going on in his personal life. I believe tours of Louisiana monuments and visiting actual voters would have worked in Vitter's advantage, as well as personal ads highlighting his family lifestyle and Louisiana roots.

Vitter, although having a very notorious scandal, has many strengths as a candidate. Holding the incumbent status creates much leeway for support. Citizens trust that he is capable of being a senator because they are used to him being the frontrunner. Vitters number one supporters, Republican conservatives, make up a large majority of Louisiana voters and can be used to a campaigns advantage. I would target those supporters using conservative issues and representing them through nationallythemed advertisements. Also, being an incumbent gives Vitter the money advantage, so his campaign would be financially stable to afford a lot of campaigning. Another strength Vitter has is his continuous success in legislation. Recently Vitter, who is a ranking member of the Republican on the Environment and Public Works Committee, introduced the NRC Reorganization ACT, which would guide the Nuclear Regulatory Commissions policy and rule-making actions and ensure a system of checks and balances. I could strategically include his current success in legislature to remind voters that he has a consistent role in lawmaking, regardless of his personal actions. Vitter also has strongly pursued his legislative agenda with his introduction of the No Washington Exemption platform. He is currently fighting against the exemption for political elites in ObamaCare. He has addressed Congress several times already and has advocated against the unfair exemption for Congressmen and other officials in Washington from ObamaCare. Using this platform for a political ad could remind voters of Vitters action to protect Louisiana against federal abuse. Since Vitter is the incumbent, my goals through advertisement would be to motivate and reinforce the message to his supporters and attempt to recreate his image for Holden supporters. Using his major weakness, D.C. Madam scandal, I can focus on his family life and past accomplishments representing Louisiana. I would want to remind voters why they elected him in the first place, before the scandals, and focus on the familiarity aspect.