Louisiana mayor running for re-election dies in car crash on Election Day

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A mayor in Louisiana died on Election Day in a car crash while running for re-election.

Velma D. Hendrix, the 84-year-old mayor of Melville, Louisiana, was involved in a two-vehicle crash on Tuesday shortly after 11 a.m., according to the Louisiana State Police.

Officials said that the driver of a 2015 Ram pickup truck failed to yield while crossing the westbound lanes of U.S. Highway 190 and hit the passenger side of an Acura, which was traveling in a westbound lane.

Hendrix was sitting in the rear left passenger seat when the crash happened and wasn't wearing a seatbelt.

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Velma D. Hendrix, the 84-year-old mayor of Melville, Louisiana, was involved in a two-vehicle crash on Tuesday shortly after 11 a.m., according to the Louisiana State Police. (Melville, Louisiana/Facebook)

She was taken to a local hospital in critical condition but was later pronounced dead.

The three additional passengers in the Acura suffered moderate to critical injuries, according to police.

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Police said the driver of the Ram pickup truck was also not wearing a seatbelt but wasn't injured. Police issued the driver a citation for failure to yield from a stop sign and no seat belt. A breathalyzer test showed that he wasn't under the influence of alcohol, police said.

Hendrix was running for re-election for mayor of Melville at the time of the crash, according to FOX8.

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The St. Landry Parish Clerk said in a Facebook post that a new election will be held Dec. 10.