Nick Lorusso Announces for State Representative

Citizen Legislator and Army Reservist Seeks Re-Election in the new District 94

New Orleans, LA – Today, Rep. Nick Lorusso (R), announces that he will be seeking re-election to new House District 94. The new district encompasses most of the geography of his current district, but takes in part of Metairie from the current House District 81, which was moved to Ascension Parish.  Lorusso is a life-long resident of District 94.  He was first elected State Representative in a special election in March of 2007.  In November of that year, he was re-elected to a full four-year term.  He currently serves in the House leadership as the Vice Chair of the Civil Law and Procedure Committee.  He is also a member of the House and Governmental Affairs, which oversaw the redistricting process, the Judiciary committee and the Special Committee on Veteran and Military Affairs.

“I’m proud of my record of proven leadership, which demonstrates the ability to solve serious problems and work together with my fellow Legislators. I’m also proud of my voting record, including my votes to repeal the Stelly tax, strengthen our ethics law and balance our budget without raising taxes, despite a $1.6 billion shortfall. As a citizen-legislator, I have supported measures to ensure fiscal responsibly regarding our citizen’s tax dollars and defended our conservative values,” Lorusso said.

In this past regular session of the legislature, Lorusso proved to be an extremely effective member of the House.  Nick Lorusso authored and passed legislation to retroactively grant benefits to families of Louisiana National Guard troops killed or disabled in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.  He also authored and passed a bill to protect neighborhoods and property owners along the Lakefront area, helping to revitalize a community devastated by Katrina.  The passage of Lorusso’s HB 475 ensured police protection to the Lake Area residents and prevented the closure of Lakeshore drive.

Lorusso graduated magna cum laude from Jesuit High School in 1985. He earned a degree in History from the University of New Orleans and a law degree from LSU law school.

After receiving his law degree, Nick was commissioned as an active duty officer in the United States Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps. He completed U.S. Army Airborne School and was stationed at Fort Drum, New York with the 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry), where he served as a Military Prosecutor and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney.  Nick deployed to the Republic of Haiti during Operation Uphold Democracy as an International Law and Detention Operations Attorney.

Upon returning to New Orleans in 1996 and transferring to the Army Reserves, Nick began a general civil litigation law practice. Then, after the tragic events of September 11, 2001, Nick was recalled to active duty by the U.S. Army as part of the Global War on Terrorism. In 2004, he was mobilized to serve as the Chief of the Legal Assistance Division for III Corps (Rear) at Fort Hood, Texas. While at Fort Hood, he was deployed to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and the Pentagon to serve at the al-Qaida terrorist tribunals.

In 2005, Nick returned to his civilian law practice. But, the return was short-lived. Following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the U.S. Army called Nick back to active duty. He served at Fort Polk, Louisiana and Camp Shelby, Mississippi as the Command Judge Advocate of a hurricane recovery task force, which assisted 3,200 soldiers and their families who lost their jobs or homes as a result of the hurricanes.

In the summer of 2006, Nick returned to his civilian law practice, specializing in medical malpractice and general defense litigation. In 2009, he was recalled to active duty a third time since 9/11 and served as the Deputy Staff Judge Advocate of I Corps (Rear) at Fort Lewis in Washington State. He currently holds rank of Lieutenant Colonel.

As a legislator, Nick has voted to decrease taxes on small businesses so they can invest in creating jobs; reduce state spending; invest in TOPS; help restore the coastline; and voted not only against the legislative pay raise, but also to reject the raise for himself after it passed. “Our citizens send their hard earned dollars to Baton Rouge. Part of my job is to make sure that those tax dollars are prioritized to meet our needs. A legislative pay raise was neither a priority nor a necessity, especially in these hard economic times,” Lorusso said.

In 2010, Nick was awarded the National Medal of Civic Honor by the National Conference of State Legislators and the Outstanding Family Advocate Award by the Louisiana Family Forum.

“My record shows a strong commitment to public service; service to our country, our state and our district. As the incumbent for District 94, I would be honored to serve another term as your State Representative,” Lorusso concluded.

Nick has been married to his wife Michelle Lorusso for eighteen years.  They have three children: Nicholas (14), Sophia (12) and Katherine (7).  They live in Lake Vista and attend St. Pius X Catholic Church.

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Paid for by the Nick Lorusso Campaign