After his easy re-election to the United States Senate in 2010, it might have been reasonable to think that David Vitter had put his seriously sinful past behind him, from a political point of view.

But questions about his dalliance with prostitution prominently and somewhat surprisingly re-emerged in the governor’s race in September — long before videos starring his alleged former paramour — at a forum held by the Orleans chapter of the Alliance for Good Government. The moderator that night asked a seemingly innocuous question, whether the candidates had ever violated Louisiana criminal law, and Vitter refused to answer what he decried as a “gotcha” question.

This week, Vitter apparently hoped to avoid a repeat of that embarrassment, as both he and his staff refrained from attending the Alliance’s forums on the runoff Tuesday evening. Their endorsement went instead to John Bel Edwards, who was represented by state Rep. Walt Leger of New Orleans.

At the beginning of Tuesday’s forum, moderator Bob Moffett of the Alliance asked the audience several times whether anyone from Vitter’s campaign had arrived. Hearing no answer, he explained that he had talked to Vitter’s office on Monday, and while the Senator wouldn’t be available, they would let him know whether they could send a representative instead.

No one ever called back, Moffett said, and no one representing Vitter stepped forward after the forum began.

That left the stage to Leger, who used the time to describe why Edwards should receive the endorsement of the Alliance for Good Government. He repeatedly called Edwards a “friend,” describing their all-night stands to try to maintain proper education funding in the state budget. Edwards’ wife is a public school teacher, which Leger noted strengthens the candidate’s support for education.

“The last person he talks to at night is a public educator, and he believes that is a huge asset,” Leger said.

Though a Democrat, Edwards is both pro-life and outspoken in his support of the Second Amendment right to bear arms — bolstered by Edwards’ West Point education and experience as an Army Ranger, Leger said. After Vitter’s first attack ad against Edwards accuses him of supporting freeing dangerous criminals, Edwards pushed back with the endorsement of the Louisiana Sheriff’s Association. Leger reminded the Alliance that Edwards’ brother, father and grandfather were all sheriffs themselves, and said Edwards intends to keep the state safe while implementing “smart” criminal-justice reform to lower incarceration rates.

“He believes in common-sense solutions to the problems that we face,” Leger said.

Leger never mentioned Vitter’s “serious sin” or his non-answer to the Alliance’s question about breaking the law in September, though he did, perhaps by contrast, invoke Edwards’ values in asking for the Alliance’s endorsement.

“I think he is the type of man — and with the character — that deserves your support,” Leger said.

Caldwell versus a Landry stand-in

After Leger’s monologue, the evening featured a more heated exchange regarding the race for Attorney General, where incumbent Buddy Caldwell faces former U.S. Rep. Jeff Landry. Caldwell attended the forum himself, but Landry was represented by campaign staffer Millard Mule, who spoke first and came out swinging.

Mule began by echoing Landry’s accusations of a “scandalous era” of “corruption, nepotism and cronyism” in the Attorney General’s office. He accused Caldwell of awarding no-bid contracts to allies and keeping his son on the payroll, and predicted that Caldwell would attack Landry with “half-truths and exaggerations” about Landry’s legal career in an attempt to distract from his own performance.

“What he does not want you to focus on is his bloated budget, wasteful spending and mismanagement of the office,” Mule said.

Caldwell thanked the Alliance for their previous endorsements in the past two election cycles, then defended his tenure as attorney general. He cited his special units on fugitive apprehension and Internet crimes against children, and said his office has the best record for issuing opinions in the country — quickly returning 650 so far, with only one reversed.

By contrast, Landry has “never tried a single case, neither a civil case nor a criminal case, not any kind of case,” Caldwell said.

The Alliance deliberates over their endorsements in a closed-door session, but afterward decided to endorse Edwards and Caldwell, said chapter President Dan Macnamara. The alliance’s endorsements in other races are available at their website.