ST. MARTIN PARISH, La. (KLFY)– This Saturday, a new parish president will be elected in St. Martin Parish. Candidate Dean LeBlanc said he is no stranger to working in the parish government having serviced on the parish council.

“I’ve been in St. Martin Parish government now for nine years as a planning and zoning commission and eight years as a sitting parish councilman, so I’m very familiar with our parish government,” LeBlanc said.

LeBlanc said the parish has faced adversity for the past seven years.

“We’ve faced a lot of adversity in our parish for the 2016 flood,” LeBlanc said. “We had a couple of hurricanes and other flood and freeze events, and then we had the COVID pandemic. We accomplished so much in the face of adversity. My goal is to keep on going forward with all the projects we have in place right now.”

As St. Martin Parish continues to grow, LeBlanc said he will propose a project to bring business closer to Interstate 10 and Highway 90.

“I’d like to tap into Interstate 10, Highway 90 corridors,” LeBlanc said. “All businesses want to be close to Interstate 10, so we need to develop some type of frontage road if we can and that’s going to take a lot of effort between not only the powers with the state and to some extent the federal government.”

LeBlanc said he is devoted to the public, and plans to bring the same commitment and leadership if elected.

“I know my heart,” he said. “I know my passion for service. For 35 years, I’ve been devoted to community service and public service, and I’ll plan to bring that same commitment and leadership as the parish president.”