Meet Ted
Harper's Dad.
Candidate for
Mayor-President.
Over the last 12 years, I have devoted my life to service of the residents of Baton Rouge. While I have accomplished so much during my tenures in the Louisiana Legislature and the Small Business Administration (SBA), I am constantly trying to find ways to do even more, knowing the needs in Baton Rouge are still great.
Baton Rouge, Louisiana’s Capital City and the seat of state government, has so much to offer: one of the country’s biggest ports, one of the country’s biggest oil refineries, the only Historically Black College and University system in the country, and the state’s flagship university. Yet somehow, we are stagnating.
I’ve traveled the country with the Small Business Administration. I’ve seen the quality of life that effective governments are building in places like Little Rock, De Soto and San Antonio. Why don’t we have that? Because our local government doesn’t have a culture of excellence. I’m running to build just that.
But we can’t just hope for it, we have to vote for it.
Baton Rouge's native son
Edward “Ted” James was born and raised in Baton Rouge. A product of historic McKinley Senior High School, Ted was taught at an early age the value of service and the strength of community. Ted earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from Southern University and A & M College and went on to obtain his Juris Doctorate at the Southern University Law Center, graduating cum laude while also serving as the President of the Student Bar Association.
Driven by a deeply held desire to improve the community that raised him, Ted joined Democratic Governor Kathleen Babineaux Blanco’s administration as the governor’s policy advisor on housing and community development, helping secure a $25 million investment into the Louisiana Housing Trust Fund and serving on the Louisiana Commission on Housing and Community Development.
A servant's heart
Ted served as a staff attorney with the Louisiana House of Representatives until he was appointed to serve as Special Counsel to the Secretary of the Louisiana Department of Revenue. Later, Ted was appointed by Republican Governor Bobby Jindal to serve on the Louisiana Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations.
In November 2011, Ted was elected to represent District 101 in the Louisiana House of Representatives. For over a decade, Ted worked across party lines advancing historic reforms spanning state government as Chairman of the Administration of Criminal Justice Committee and Chairman of the Louisiana Legislative Black Caucus.
Proven leader
In December 2021, Ted was appointed by President Joe Biden to serve as the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Regional Administrator for Region 6. In this role, Ted oversaw the administration of SBA products and services throughout the south central United States, helping entrepreneurs start, grow, and build resilient businesses across Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Texas.
As Administrator, Ted traveled the country watching communities blossom. He saw firsthand the power of effective local government and its ability to enact meaningful, impactful change, and he grew frustrated as other communities with fewer resources outpaced his beloved hometown.
Girl Dad
In 2017, Ted assumed his most important role yet: father to Harper Ryan. As his daughter grows, Ted worries she, like many in our community, will be forced to one day choose between building her own family in her hometown or moving to pursue greater opportunities. Ted’s running for mayor-president to transform Baton Rouge into a hub of innovation and prosperity, a place we are all proud to call home. So no one’s child is forced to choose between home and opportunity.
