Lillian Walker (politician)
| Lillian W. Walker | |
|---|---|
| Louisiana State Representative for East Baton Rouge Parish |
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In office 1964–1972 |
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| Preceded by |
Four at-large members: |
| Succeeded by | Clark Gaudin (single-member district) |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
May 8, 1923 Meridian, Lauderdale County Mississippi |
| Died | December 22, 2016 (aged 93) Baton Rouge, Louisiana |
| Resting place | Greenoaks Mausoleum in Baton Rouge |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Edward Everett Walker (married c. 1942-1998, his death) |
| Children |
Edward Theodore Walker |
| Parents | Rudolph Blanche and Maggie Elizabeth George Walker |
| Residence | Baton Rouge, Louisiana |
| Occupation | Political and social activist |
Four at-large members:
William F. "Bill" Bernhard, Jr.
Eugene Webb McGehee
A. T. "Apple" Sanders, Jr.
Edward Theodore Walker
Lillian Walker Walker, known as Lillian W. Walker (May 8, 1923 – December 22, 2016), was a member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana, who served two terms from 1964 to 1972, corresponding with the administration of Governor John J. McKeithen, her fellow Democrat.
After two terms in the state House, Walker was narrowly unseated in the general election held on February 1, 1972, by the Republican Clark Gaudin, also of Baton Rouge. Gaudin polled 6,949 votes (51 percent) to Walker’s 6,645 (49 percent). Only the fourth Republican in the Louisiana legislature since Reconstruction, Gaudin had served a partial term from 1967 to 1968, having won a special election created by the resignation of Luther F. Cole, who became a judge of the 19th Judicial District Court.
For most of her legislative tenure, Walker was the only woman among the 105 House members. She was the first woman legislator in Louisiana who did not succeed a husband in the office. In 1969, she was joined by Helen L. Laperouse of New Iberia, who followed her late husband, Lionel Laperouse, Jr. And in 1971, Dorothy Mae Taylor of New Orleans became the first African American female representative. Early in her tenure, Walker persuaded Governor McKeithen to establish the Louisiana Commission on the Status of Women.
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