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Today's weather: Mostly sunny with a high of 72.

🎂 Happy birthday to our members Jan Genke and Jared Frank!

🎧 Sounds like: "Crescent City" by Lucinda Williams.

Today’s newsletter is 991 words — a 3.5-minute read.

Louisiana and California have something surprising in common: Both have among the nation's highest poverty rates when the cost of living is factored in, according to Census Bureau data.

Why it matters: Southern states dominate America's traditional poverty rankings. But that familiar geographic divide starts to disappear when more of a family's financial realities are taken into account.

• Axios analyzed 2023-2025 state poverty estimates from the Census Bureau to see what happens when housing, taxes, medical expenses and government benefits enter the picture.

What we found: Under the Census' traditional-style official measure, Louisiana had a 19.6% poverty rate and California was at 10.7%.

• California's poverty rate jumped by nearly two-thirds to 17.8% under the broader Supplemental Poverty Measure, or SPM. Louisiana remained near the top at 19%.

How it works: The traditional measure compares pretax cash income with a family-size threshold that doesn't change by geography.

• The SPM adds benefits such as SNAP and housing assistance, factors in taxes and tax credits, subtracts work and medical expenses, and adjusts for geographic differences in housing costs.

Zoom out: The South is home to 10 of the 11 states where the traditional poverty rate significantly outpaced the national average.

Yes, but: The SPM doesn't replace the official poverty rate.

• The Census Bureau designed it as another lens — one that captures resources and unavoidable expenses the traditional measure misses.
• The state figures also aren't single-year 2025 estimates. Census recommends three-year averages because state samples in the Current Population Survey are smaller.

The bottom line: Income alone doesn't tell you whether a family can make ends meet.

Full story

Most midterm ballots may be in, but Louisiana has two House races headed to runoffs Dec. 12.

Why it matters: Those votes will determine whether Rep. Troy Carter is Louisiana's sole Democrat in the House during a year that saw a historic blue wave at the polls.

Zoom in: North Louisiana's District 5 was left vacant when Rep. Julia Letlow (successfully) ran for Bill Cassidy's Senate seat. Democrat Pat Moore and Republican Gabe Firment made it to the runoff.

• Central Louisiana's District 6 seat is open after Rep. Cleo Fields decided not to run again after Republicans' redistricting efforts made it harder for a Democrat to win.
• Now, Democrat Chauna Banks and Republican state Sen. Blake Miguez are vying for the seat, according to complete but unofficial Secretary of State results.

Voters in both districts whittled down long lists of candidates to two: a white Republican man and a Black Democratic woman — notable during last week's election when Black voters proved incredibly influential.

• With all candidates' votes combined, however, Republicans in the 5th and 6th districts secured far more than Democrats.

Catch up quick: These races would have been decided for good last week after party primaries earlier this year.

• But after the state's redistricting efforts landed in front of the Supreme Court, lawmakers made yet another map and scrambled the 2026 election schedule.
• Ultimately, some voters cast primary ballots for House races that didn't count, and the state reset the election with jungle primaries Nov. 3 instead.

Between the lines: Republican redistricting efforts were broadly disastrous in the Nov. 3 election after new maps nationwide spread GOP support too thin.

What's next: Early voting begins Nov. 28.

Full story

🏈 The Saints got a much-needed win (23-22) over the Cleveland Browns yesterday. (Highlights)

• Meanwhile, LSU lost to Alabama 31-13 and plummeted to No. 24 in AP's rankings.
• Tulane also had an embarrassing 50-point loss. (AP)

🤑 First lady Melania Trump was at the LSU game to announce a $7.2 million endowment through her Fostering the Future initiative that will give scholarships to students who were in foster care. (Press release and People)

• MMR Group, led by LSU alumnus James "Pepper" Rutland, donated $5 million. LSU Foundation donors contributed the rest. (Reveille)

🍴 Dakar and GW Fins are among OpenTable's 100 most-loved restaurants in America this year. (Full list)

🏗️ Demolition wrapped up at Clearview City Center, and new pilings are going in now. The mall is transforming into an open-air shopping center, set to open in 2028. (New renderings)

A grassroots recall campaign aimed at Gov. Jeff Landry is officially over after failing to collect enough signatures, according to the Louisiana Secretary of State.

Zoom out: Landry still has to make his case for staying in office when he's up for reelection next year.

The big picture: Landry framed the recall campaign's end as voters' confidence in the GOP after Louisiana narrowly elected Rep. Julia Letlow to a Senate seat last week.

• "My administration remains focused on delivering results, growing our economy, and making Louisiana a place for families to flourish," Landry said on X.

What we're watching: A separate recall petition was also filed for Attorney General Liz Murrill.

• It ends today, according to Secretary of State spokesman Trey Williams.

Editor's note: This story has been corrected to reflect the deadline for a recall petition filed for Attorney General Liz Murrill is Nov. 9 (not Nov. 13).

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👋 Carlie here. NOLA Korea is a hole-in-the-wall restaurant in Metairie with delicious noodles.

The big picture: Your meal starts with banchan, which are small dishes of kimchi and other prepared vegetables.

• I love the chewy texture of the glass noodles in the japchae and the beefy goodness in the bulgogi.
• The restaurant also serves jjajangmyeon, a popular black bean noodle dish.

Photos

🧚🏼‍♀️ Carlie is finishing her ren fest costume. Pro tips if you are heading to Hammond.

💜 Chelsea is starting to think about her Mardi Gras costumes.

Tell a noodle lover to subscribe.

Thanks to our editor Jen Burkett.