David Duke in Election Runoff

In response to “Ex-Klan Leader in Louisiana Runoff,” Oct. 20:

David Duke in a runoff for the Louisiana governorship! What were 32% of the state’s voters thinking when they chose a former leader of the Ku Klux Klan to hold Louisiana’s highest office? Obviously, Duke’s reputation as a hatemonger made no difference to a good number of voters.

Do Louisianians’ support of Duke convey a tacit acceptance of the klan, a group based on the idea that some people are superior to others by virtue of their birth--a group with a despicable history of terror and violence?

Duke’s campaign appealed to the baser instincts of voters. He played on voters’ anger over the recession by complaining about welfare cheaters, high taxes and special treatment of minorities. This is not a politician with an eye toward improvement and reform; it’s a man willing to stir up resentment to further his own personal agenda.

At age 41, Duke can apparently look forward to a long career in Louisiana politics. This is an embarrassment to the state, and will be a black eye for America if he succeeds in winning a Senate seat in the future.

We need an organized outcry across the country against Duke’s candidacy. The Republican Party needs to denounce him and withdraw all support, just as the Democratic Party denounced klan leader Tom Metzger when he ran for Congress in California.

LAURA BROWN, Pasadena