Study Group with Governor Asa Hutchinson

Is America Hopelessly Divided?

How can executive leadership change the tone and bridge the divide? How can rural America and urban America find common ground? Is the key to breaking the grid-lock the idea of non-partisan redistricting or ranked choice voting? Gov. John Bel Edwards is a Democrat elected in a red state and accomplished significant change while working with a Republican legislature.

GUEST: Governor John Bel Edwards, 56th Governor of Louisiana (2016-2024), joins Resident Fellow Governor Asa Hutchinson in-person for the October 22 session.

John Bel Edwards served as the 56th Governor of Louisiana from 2016 until January 2024. In 2008, he was elected to the Louisiana House of Representatives, where he represented the people of Amite, Greensburg, Kentwood, and Hammond for eight years before being elected governor. 

Edwards attended the United States Military Academy at West Point. As a cadet, he completed Airborne School and served as vice-chairman of the panel that enforces the West Point Honor Code. The governor graduated from West Point in 1988, commissioning as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army. He served on active duty for 8 years, earning Airborne, Ranger, and Jumpmaster status, culminating with command of a rifle company in the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. He earned his J.D. from LSU Law Center in 1999.

AUDIENCE: These conversations are open to members of the Harvard community. Please RSVP with a valid Harvard email address. 

OFF-THE-RECORD: In keeping with our long tradition at the IOP to ensure honest and candid discussions of politics, all IOP study groups are off-the-record.