Temple OK’d to Run Against Donelon in Louisiana Insurance Commissioner Race

August 9, 2019

A Republican challenger to Louisiana’s long-serving insurance commissioner has qualified for the Oct. 12 statewide election.

Tim Temple, a Republican from Baton Rouge, will be facing off against Jim Donelon, a Metairie Republican who has led the Louisiana Department of Insurance since 2006.

According to Associated Press reports, Temple has 20 years of experience in the insurance industry and has put more than $1 million of his own money into the race.

The AP reported that Temple has accused Donelon of doing too little to lower insurance rates and attract competition to the market.

However, Donelon says he’s boosted the number of companies writing insurance in Louisiana and recently touted several auto insurance rate decreases this year. In June, he announced that Progressive Security Insurance Co. and Louisiana Farm Bureau have filed to reduce auto insurance rates. State Farm also has implemented three rate decreases in Louisiana in the past year.

Donelon also points out on his re-election campaign website that the market for property insurance in the state has expanded since Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

Information on Temple’s website states he “worked his way up in the industry from neighborhood insurance agent to insurance executive helping businesses recover from the BP oil spill.” Currently, Temple serves as president of a family owned real estate management company, Temptan.

Temptan has been endorsed by the Louisiana Motor Transport Association, which represents the trucking industry in the state. In a statement, the association said the current “worsening crisis within Louisiana’s commercial-auto insurance market” is behind its decision to endorse Temple.

An attorney, Donelon previously served in the Louisiana House of Representatives.

Topics Louisiana Oklahoma

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