BATON ROUGE, La. — 11:25 a.m.
Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards says voters shouldn't cast ballots in the governor's race based on Washington politics or President Donald Trump's rallies.
The Deep South's only Democratic governor met with campaign volunteers Wednesday in Monroe, ahead of Trump's visit to urge support for Edwards' Republican opponent Eddie Rispone.
Edwards continued to downplay any differences with the president.
He says he has a good working relationship with Trump and blamed the president's critical tweets on "bad information" Trump is receiving from Rispone and his GOP supporters.
Thousands were expected at Trump's Wednesday night rally. The get-out-the-vote event falls during Louisiana's early voting period, which continues through Saturday.
Election Day is Saturday.
Rispone has hitched his candidacy to Trump. Edwards is focusing on state-specific issues in his bid for a second term.
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5 a.m.
President Donald Trump is turning his attention to the nation's last gubernatorial race of 2019, seeking to drive Louisiana's Democratic governor from office.
The president is traveling Wednesday night to the northeastern Louisiana city of Monroe. There, he'll rally supporters to cast their ballots for Republican businessman Eddie Rispone, bidding to keep Democratic incumbent John Bel Edwards from a second term.
Early voting ends Saturday in the Nov. 16 election.
An endorsement video circulated by the state GOP shows Trump describing Rispone as "a fantastic man" and Edwards as "a disaster."
Edwards downplays Trump's efforts as Washington-style partisanship.
Republicans want to reclaim the governorship in a Deep South state where they believe Edwards' 2015 victory was a fluke. Democrats believe securing an Edwards win could demonstrate competitiveness in the region.
