Elaine S. Edwards | |
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United States Senator from Louisiana |
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In office August 1, 1972 – November 13, 1972 |
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Appointed by | Edwin Edwards |
Preceded by | Allen J. Ellender |
Succeeded by | J. Bennett Johnston |
First Lady of Louisiana | |
In office May 9, 1972 – March 10, 1980 |
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Personal details | |
Born |
Elaine Schwartzenburg March 8, 1929 Marksville, Louisiana, U.S. |
Political party | Democratic |
Spouse(s) | Edwin Edwards (1949–1989) |
Children | Anna Victoria Stephen David |
Religion | Roman Catholicism |
Elaine Schwartzenburg Edwards (born March 8, 1929) is a former United States Senator and the first wife of Edwin Washington Edwards, making her a former First Lady of Louisiana.
Edwards was born in Marksville, the seat of Avoyelles Parish, to Errol Leo Schwartzenburg (1909–1999) and Myrl Dupuy Schwartzenburg (1907–2001). Elaine also had a brother, Frank, and another brother, Ralph.
On August 1, 1972, Edwin Edwards appointed Elaine to the U. S. Senate after the death of Allen Ellender. She agreed to resign after a new senator was elected, and she shared her husband's political philosophy.
During the 1976 presidential election campaign, Elaine endorsed Gerald Ford over Jimmy Carter, while her husband first endorsed California governor Jerry Brown, and later endorsed Carter after Brown failed to obtain the nomination.
She married Edwin Edwards in 1949. An observer said that Elaine Edwards "wanted the opposite of what Edwin wanted. She hated the fishbowl of politics." Both graduated from Marksville High School.
Edwin and Elaine Edwards divorced in 1989 after forty years of marriage. She is the mother of four children, including Stephen Edwards, who was convicted alongside his father in 2000, stemming from a riverboat casino licensing scheme. The other three children are Anna, Victoria and David.