Louisiana citizens are now just one day away from voting in Louisiana’s closed primary elections. Most of the media spotlight recently has been on the US Senate race between John Fleming, Bill Cassidy and Julia Letlow. However, there is one other key race that we can’t forget about—the Republican primary for District 1 of the Louisiana State Supreme Court.

This Republican primary features two candidates: William “Billy” Burris and Blair Downing Edwards. Both candidates have touted their conservative bona fides and judicial experience. However, there is only one truly conservative candidate in this primary—Judge William “Billy” Burris

Judge Burris is the real deal. A Federalist Society member, lifetime NRA supporter, and former president of the Washington Parish Bar Association, Burris has spent his career on the 22nd Judicial District bench enforcing the law as written—not rewriting it to suit special interests. He’s been a conservative Republican his whole life, and his record shows it: tough on crime, protective of victims’ rights, and committed to judicial restraint. Louisiana needs his conservative voice on the State Supreme Court.

His opponent, First Circuit Judge Blair Downing Edwards, is running a very different campaign.

She wants voters to believe she’s a “lifelong Christian conservative” However, Edwards has married into one of Louisiana’s most entrenched Democratic political dynasties. Her husband, Daniel Edwards, is a fourth-generation Tangipahoa Parish sheriff who served as a Democrat until recently – Daniel Edwards quit as the Tangipahoa sheriff a little after the FBI raided his office amid an ugly investigation involving drugs disappearing from the evidence locker. Blair Downing Edwards’ brother-in-law is former Democratic Governor John Bel Edwards.

That’s not a conservative pedigree. That’s dynasty politics dressed up in red now that Louisiana is a staunchly Republican state.

In 2012, Edwards and her husband received a $305,000 mortgage and a staggering $50 million line of credit from Big 4 Investments LLC. Big 4 is owned and controlled by the Smith family—the same family that owns Smitty’s Supply Inc. in Tangipahoa Parish. They share the same address, the same ownership structure, and the same financial interests. Big 4 is their private investment and holding company directly tied to Smitty’s.

Fast-forward a few years, Smitty’s Supply had a workers’ compensation dispute reach the First Circuit Court of Appeal—where Edwards sat on the panel. The company, represented by none other than her brother-in-law John Bel Edwards’ law firm, walked away with a favorable ruling. The panel ruled in Smitty’s favor, and Edwards never recused herself despite the blatant  conflict of interest!

Louisiana conservatives have seen this game before. Dynasty insiders switch labels when convenient, provide favors to political insiders, and expect the GOP base to look the other way.

Not this time.

Billy Burris is certainly the proven conservative in this primary. Blair Downing Edwards is the candidate pretending to be one—complete with a campaign-funded makeover and a record that shouts conflict of interest.