What’s this?  Just when you thought you’d heard everything that was actually inside the realm of possibility or belief about the race in Senate District 22, there is a new twist today that once again brings into question the judgment of one of the candidates.

We reported earlier in this space that the field has for all intents and purposes narrowed to a two-man race between a founding member of the Louisiana Freedom Caucus and leader of the House Republican Legislative Delegation, Blake Miguez, a known conservative champion, and Hugh Andre, the Good Old Boy (GOB) champion of the RINOs who apparently doesn’t even live in Senate District 22. 

The Hayride was given access to some photographs by locals of activities taking place at the trailer and warehouse on the farm property where now Andre claims to live.

The Hayride also reported that Andre is owner of HMC Farms, LLC, holding 100% interest in the corporation according to personal finance disclosure statements. HMC Farms has received over $594,000 in farming subsidies between 1995 and 2021. Listed on the same property as HMC Farms is Andre Brothers, LLC, which also claimed $268,000 in federal funds between 2017 and 2021, though it only reports having one single employee. Since 2015, Andre’s HMC Farms as well as Andre Brothers, LLC (since 2016) have regularly petitioned to hire cheap foreign labor through the H-2A visa program, according to the US Customs and Immigration Services and US Department of Homeland Security public information. Both corporations operate from the same farmland property.

This begs the question that is being posed to us by locals: are these Guatemalan and other foreign workers that Andre has hired on the H-2A Visa program who are working at his campaign events, preparing the food at his campaign events and otherwise constructing his campaign signs in a warehouse on his property then putting them up along the roadways?

Does Andre even understand that if they are, this could be a serious violation of federal law?

According to the U.S. Department of Labor rules explained in the program’s H-2A Employer Handbook:

“The work to be performed must consist of agricultural labor or services, such as the planting, raising, cultivating, harvesting or any other agricultural or horticultural commodity.”

We hope it is not the case that anyone would be misusing cheap foreign labor here. Our hard-working farmers deserve the respect and admiration of all of Louisiana. Bad actors in any industry give all who play by the rules a black eye.