John Bel Edwards

John Bel Edwards (born September 16, 1966) is an American politician, attorney, and Army veteran who served as the 56th governor of Louisiana from 2016 to 2024. A Southern Democrat, he previously served in the Louisiana House of Representatives from 2008 to 2015. Edwards represented parts of the Florida Parishes and served as minority leader from 2012 to 2015.

Edwards graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1988 with a Bachelor of Science in engineering and served in the United States Army as an infantry officer for eight years. In 1996, he was honorably discharged with the rank of Captain. After leaving the Army, Edwards attended and graduated from LSU Law. Following his tenure as a law clerk to Judge James L. Dennis, he returned home to Amite and began his career as a lawyer in private practice.

First elected to the Louisiana House in 2007, Edwards became Democratic minority leader in 2012. He defeated Republican U.S. Senator David Vitter in the second round of the 2015 gubernatorial election, and became Louisiana governor in January 2016. During his first term, Edwards expanded protections for LGBTQ people in the workplace, enacted Medicaid expansion, signed legislation to reduce Louisiana's prison population, and implemented a six-week abortion ban. He won a second term in 2019, becoming the first Democrat to win reelection as governor of Louisiana since Edwin Edwards (no relation) in 1975. In his second term, Edwards was governor during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as during Hurricane Ida and Hurricane Nicholas. He also signed legislation requiring public schools to display the national motto "In God We Trust" in classrooms. After leaving office in 2024, Edwards joined the New Orleans–based law firm Fishman Haygood LLP, where his practice focuses primarily on renewable energy litigation.

Some political observers have described Edwards as a conservative Democrat. Edwards has also been described as a moderate and as a populist. He is the most recent Democrat to win or hold statewide office in Louisiana.