Louisiana will have 16 candidates for governor this year, and half of them are new on the list. The other half have been campaigning for some time.

Republican state Attorney General Jeff Landry of Broussard is perhaps the best known on the list. He has been in the news over the last eight years too many times. Publicity has been one of his major pursuits.

Other well-known Republicans signed up to run are state Sen. Sharon Hewitt of Slidell, state Rep. Richard Nelson of Mandeville, state Treasurer John Schroder of Baton Rouge, and Stephen Waguespack of Abbeville.

The other Republicans who have qualified are Patrick Henry “Dat” Barthel of St. Rose, Xavier Ellis of Opelousas, and “Xan” John of Lafayette.

Shawn Wilson of Lafayette, the state’s former transportation secretary, is the prominent Democrat in the race. Daniel M. “Danny” Cole of Trout and  Oscar “Omar” Dantzler Jr. of Hammond are the other Democrats.

Hunter Lundy of Lake Charles is the better known independent in the race. The three others are Benjamin Barnes of Angola, Jeffery Istre of Kaplan, and Frank Scurlock of Metairie.

“Keitron” Gagnon of Metairie is a No Party candidate.

Lundy gave us a preview of what we can expect now that the campaign has officially begun.

“If you want more of the past, then vote for the top cop (Landry), or the road builder with the worst roads in the nation (Wilson), or the Bobby Jindal protégé (Waguespack),” Lundy said, according to a report in The Advocate.

Wilson took issue with Lundy, saying the Edwards administration has undertaken a number of projects that have been on the books for years. Waguespack said he became disillusioned with the Jindal administration after five years once Jindal shifted his focus to his presidential campaign.

Hewitt criticized Landry for siding with trial lawyers instead of oil and gas companies in coastal lawsuits, which she said has pushed high-paying jobs to Texas. She called him “no-show Landry” for shunning campaign forums.

The Advocate reported that Schroder told the USA Today Network on Tuesday that Landry is an “antagonistic bully.” Landry told the newspaper he was unfazed by the criticism, saying, “Everyone knows who I am.”

Republican Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser of Metairie has six opponents, including two other Republicans — Elbert “Pawpaw” Guillory of Opelousas, a former state legislator; and “Tami” Hotard of Madisonville. Willie Jones of New Orleans is a Democrat. Bruce Payton of Bush is an independent. Chester Pritchett of Roseland and Gary Rispone are two No Party candidates.

Eight candidates are trying to replace GOP Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin who is not seeking re-election. “Gwen” Collins-Greenup of Baton Rouge and Arthur Morrell of New Orleans are the Democrats. Amanda “Smith” Jennings of West Monroe is an Other candidate.

The Republicans are Mike Francis of Crowley, a member of the state Public Service Commission and a former chairman of the Louisiana Republican Party, Thomas J. Kennedy III of New Orleans, Nancy Landry of Baton Rouge, current Speaker of the House Clay Schexnayder of Sorrento, and Brandon Trosclair of Gonzales.

This is one of the more important positions in state government because of its supervision of state elections. The new secretary of state will be trying to purchase new voting machines, a job that has been controversial and that has taken entirely too much time.

Voters need to ask these candidates a lot of questions. Trosclair, for example, says the office has been tarnished by years of mismanagement and controversy, which is a figment of his imagination. He also wants to return to using paper ballots, another mistake.

Five candidates are trying to replace Landry as attorney general. The Republicans are “Marty” Maley of Baton Rouge, “Liz” Baker Murrill of Baton Rouge, who has worked for Landry, and state Rep. John Stefanski of Crowley. The Democrats are Lindsey Cheek and Perry Walker Terrebonne, both of New Orleans.

Dustin Granger of Lake Charles, a Democrat, is one of three candidates seeking the state treasurer’s job. The Republicans are John Fleming of Minden, a former congressman, and state Rep. Scott McKnight of Baton Rouge.

Mike Strain of Covington, state commissioner of agriculture and forestry, is unopposed.

Republican “Tim” Temple of Baton Rouge and Democrat R.D. “Rich” Weaver of Prairieville are trying to replace Jim Donelon, the current commissioner of insurance who isn’t seeking re-election. This is also a controversial position in light of recent insurance rate increases in home and vehicle insurance.

Political analysts said once qualifying ended heated campaigns would begin. Bring them on!