LAFAYETTE, La. (KLFY) — Lafayette City Council member Patrick Lewis has announced he is running for a seat in the state legislature.

“This fall, I will humbly come to you to seek your support of my candidacy for the District 44 seat in the Louisiana House of Representatives,” Lewis said in a email Thursday.

Lewis represents Lafayette City Council District 1, to which he was elected in 2019. He retired from Lafayette Parish School System with 26 years of combined service between the Transportation Division and the Sales Tax Division. Prior to that, Lewis was employed in the banking industry for 14 years.

Lewis hopes to succeed Vincent J. Pierre, who has held that seat in the House since 2011.

“Rep. Pierre has emerged as a leader among those legislators representing the City and Parish of Lafayette, the Acadiana Delegation, the Democratic Caucus, and the Louisiana Legislative Black Caucus and has placed House District 44 on a forward trajectory that will require one to hit the ground running for the continued strides toward the advancement of North Lafayette’s most critical priorities,” Lewis said.

Lewis is a graduate of Lafayette High School and holds a bachelor’s degree from University of Louisiana at Lafayette. He is married to Tracy Mouton Lewis and they share two adult children and one grandson.

The election for the seat will take place on Oct. 14, with a runoff on Nov. 18 if no candidate receives a majority of the votes.