 Long was elected to the Louisiana State Senate and served from May 1956 to May 1964, after which he ran in the primary to be the Democratic nominee for election to United States House of Representatives representing Louisiana's 8th congressional district.His opponent in the primary was the incumbent, his cousin Gillis Long.Both of the Longs were segregationists but Gillis Long was less outspoken in his views than Speedy Long was, and Gillis had also, according to Speedy, aided the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by voting to increase the size of the House Rules Committee from 12 to 15 members, thus diluting the South's influence on the committee.