Pigskin and voting booths: will football throw the Louisiana election?

On Wednesday, we wrote about how the post-Katrina demographic shift will impact Louisiana elections. But a new story at Stateline.org wonders if another wildcard factor will impact the race: football.

Louisiana voters will vote for a new governor this weekend -- and leader Rep. Bobby Jindal (R) is worried a competing LSU game might affect the outcome:

The country could have its first new governor of the 2007 elections this Saturday (Oct. 20) if U.S. Rep. Bobby Jindal (R-La.) holds on to his lead and wins a majority of the vote in Louisiana's gubernatorial primary. But the decision could hinge on a football game.

Only in Louisiana, known for its peculiar election laws and devotion to college football, could a Louisiana State University football once again play a role in deciding the victor in a governor's race.

Jindal is worried that voters will be so distracted by this Saturday's LSU-Auburn University football game - held the same day as the primary - that they will forget to vote.

The last time Jindal made a bid for the governor's mansion in 2003, the LSU Tigers played the Crimson Tide in Alabama on Election Day. "I can't tell you how many people came up to me and said, `I was going to vote for you, but I went to the game,'" Jindal told The Associated Press earlier this month.

This weekend is also the start of deer hunting season -- adding to Jindal's fears that he won't get the 50% of the vote he needs to avoid a run-off election next month.