Louisiana Senator John Hainkel, who served as both speaker of the House and Senate president and as a Democrat and a Republican, died in his sleep after cooking a steak dinner for some close Senate colleagues in April.

• Position: People & Politics - Brief Article

Louisiana Senator John Hainkel, who served as both speaker of the House and Senate president and as a Democrat and a Republican, died in his sleep after cooking a steak dinner for some close Senate colleagues in April. First elected to the House in 1968, he was one of a group of reformers called the "Young Turks." Hainkel was selected in 1979 to be speaker of the House by David Treen, the first Republican governor since Reconstruction. At the time, Hainkel was a conservative Democrat. He served as speaker from 1980 to 1984...