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{{Infobox officeholder
{{Infobox officeholder
| name=Ernest S. Clements
| name=Ernest S. Clements
| office=[[Louisiana]] State Senator for Allen, [[Beauregard, Calcasieu, Cameron, and Jefferson Davis parishes
| office=[[Louisiana]] State Senator for Allen, Beauregard, Calcasieu, Cameron, and Jefferson Davis parishes
| term_start=1936
| term_start=1936
| term_end=1944
| term_end=1944
==The most loyal Longite==
==The most loyal Longite==
Clements served as a state senator from 1936 to 1944, when he gave up the seat, then won by Gilbert Franklin Hennigan (1883-1960), to launch a quixotic campaign for governor. Most of his fellow Longites were openly supporting an elderly attorney and former [[U.S. representative]], Lewis Lovering Morgan (1876-1950) of Covington in St. Tammany Parish in [[suburb]]an [[New Orleans]]. Clements polled only 20,404 votes in the [[Democratic Party|Democratic]] [[primary]], then closed to registered party members. The winner that year of his first of two nonconsecutive terms was [[Jimmie Davis]], a popular singer and occasional actor, by which roles he had become a state celebrity.
Clements served as a state senator from 1936 to 1944, when he gave up the seat, then won by Gilbert Franklin Hennigan (1883-1960), to launch a quixotic campaign for governor. Most of his fellow Longites were openly supporting an elderly attorney and former [[U.S. Representative]] Lewis Lovering Morgan (1876-1950) of Covington in St. Tammany Parish in [[suburb]]an [[New Orleans]]. Clements polled only 20,404 votes in the [[Democratic Party|Democratic]] [[primary]], then closed to registered party members. The winner that year of his first of two nonconsecutive terms was [[Jimmie Davis]], a popular singer and occasional actor, by which roles he had become a state celebrity.
In 1948, Governor Earl Long named Clements head of the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries,<ref name=findagrave/> a plum political prize. Clements, however, had expected to be named to head the highway department, a patronage distributor, and he was known for placing demanding "deadheads" on the state payroll. These are individuals who collect government checks for doing little or no productive labor. Bill Dodd said that Earl Long told Clements: "Ernest, you ain't gonna take over that highway business. You ain't got sense enough to handle it. I'm willing to put you in charge of them coons and possums [Wildlife and Fisheries]. You can take it or leave it!" So Clements, unsurprisingly but offended at Long's high-handed attitude, accepted the appointment.<ref name=bdodd/>
In 1948, Governor Earl Long named Clements head of the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries,<ref name=findagrave/> a plum political prize. Clements, however, had expected to be named to head the highway department, a patronage distributor, and he was known for placing demanding "deadheads" on the state payroll. These are individuals who collect government checks for doing little or no productive labor. Bill Dodd said that Earl Long told Clements: "Ernest, you ain't gonna take over that highway business. You ain't got sense enough to handle it. I'm willing to put you in charge of them coons and possums [Wildlife and Fisheries]. You can take it or leave it!" So Clements, unsurprisingly but offended at Long's high-handed attitude, accepted the appointment.<ref name=bdodd/>