The finance chairman of the state Republican Party, Buckels in 2018 headed a committee to make endorsements of GOP candidates for state office. In the race for secretary of state to replace [[Tom Schedler]], who resigned over a sexual harassment complaint. At first the party considered endorsing three of the five Republican candidates in the race. This left out [[Moderate Republican]] state Representative [[Julie Stokes]] of [[suburb]]an Jefferson Parish, and interim Secretary of State [[Kyle Ardoin]], who formerly contributed to the reelection campaign of [[Democratic Party|Democratic]] former [[U.S. Senator]] [[Mary Landrieu]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nola.com/news/education/article_78fb6969-3b49-56d5-a335-e96aba2236d8.html|title=Louisiana GOP fights over who is conservative enough to endorse|publisher=''The New Orleans Times-Picayune''|date=August 31, 2018; updated July 11, 2019|author=Mary O''Donoghue|accessdate=September 6, 2020}}</ref> who was unseated in 2014 by Republican [[Bill Cassidy]]. Ultimately the party made no primary endorsement but then supported Ardoin in the runoff contest. Ardoin then won a full term in the regular 2019 elections. | The finance chairman of the state Republican Party, Buckels in 2018 headed a committee to make endorsements of GOP candidates for state office. In the race for secretary of state to replace [[Tom Schedler]], who resigned over a sexual harassment complaint. At first the party considered endorsing three of the five Republican candidates in the race. This left out [[Moderate Republican]] state Representative [[Julie Stokes]] of [[suburb]]an Jefferson Parish, and interim Secretary of State [[Kyle Ardoin]], who formerly contributed to the reelection campaign of [[Democratic Party|Democratic]] former [[U.S. Senator]] [[Mary Landrieu]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nola.com/news/education/article_78fb6969-3b49-56d5-a335-e96aba2236d8.html|title=Louisiana GOP fights over who is conservative enough to endorse|publisher=''The New Orleans Times-Picayune''|date=August 31, 2018; updated July 11, 2019|author=Mary O''Donoghue|accessdate=September 6, 2020}}</ref> who was unseated in 2014 by Republican [[Bill Cassidy]]. Ultimately the party made no primary endorsement but then supported Ardoin in the runoff contest. Ardoin then won a full term in the regular 2019 elections. |