Trump-Backed Challenger and Louisiana State Treasurer Advance to Runoff Against Incumbent Senator Cassidy

(SeaPRwire) –   The Associated Press declared Saturday evening that the tight Republican primary contest for Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy’s seat will proceed to a runoff election—though Cassidy will not be advancing.

Louisiana Representative Julia Letlow, a candidate backed by President Donald Trump, claimed the largest share of votes, per the AP, highlighting the President’s influence. State Treasurer John Fleming finished in second place.

Since neither Letlow nor Fleming secured more than 50% of the votes, they will now face off in a runoff next month. Cassidy’s third-place finish, meanwhile, marks the end of his bid for a third Senate term.

During his election night address, Cassidy did not directly name Trump but appeared to reference the President—specifically his false claims that the 2020 election was stolen from him.

“When you participate in democracy, sometimes it doesn’t turn out the way you want it to, but you don’t pout, you don’t whine, you don’t claim the election was stolen, you don’t find a reason why you lost,” the senator said. “You thank the voters for the privilege of representing the state or the country for as long as you’ve had that privilege, and that’s what I’m doing right now.”

Trump congratulated Letlow on defeating Cassidy in a late Saturday post on Truth Social.

“Julia Letlow is a fantastic person and, after taking care of some additional business, will make a brilliant Senator for the Great People of Louisiana, a State that I love, helped make prosperous with my Energy Policies and everything else, and won six times in a row, including Primaries,” he wrote.

The primary race has been rife with intra-party tension. While Senate Majority Leader John Thune and the National Republican Senatorial Committee supported Cassidy, other prominent GOP leaders—including Trump and Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry—backed Letlow. In January, Trump announced his endorsement of Letlow before she officially launched her campaign, calling her “a Great Star” who “has ALWAYS delivered for Louisiana.” Though he didn’t mention Cassidy in the post, Trump’s endorsement of the incumbent senator’s opponent was a clear snub.

In the lead-up to Saturday’s election, polling showed Cassidy trailing Letlow and at times Fleming.

Cassidy has long been a target of the President’s ire. The Louisiana senator was among the seven Republicans who voted to convict Trump in his second impeachment trial in 2021. As a physician and vaccine advocate, Cassidy has also been one of the few GOP politicians to push back against the Trump administration’s changes to the nation’s vaccine policies. During confirmation hearings for Robert F. Kennedy Jr.—one of the country’s most notorious vaccine skeptics—for Secretary of Health and Human Services, Cassidy expressed concerns about Trump’s decision to nominate him, though he ultimately voted to confirm Kennedy.

Cassidy and the President’s strained relationship returned to the spotlight last month when Trump railed against the senator on Truth Social. In his post, Trump accused Cassidy of having “stood in the way” of his controversial nominee for U.S. Surgeon General, Casey Means. Trump withdrew Means’ name for consideration after her confirmation stalled due to lack of support.

“For months, Senator Bill Cassidy (of the GREAT State of Louisiana!), a very disloyal person whose ‘TRUMP’ Endorsement got him elected, but later voted to impeach ‘President Trump’ on what has now proven to be a total Hoax and Scam, has stood in the way of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Nominee, Casey Means, for the important position of U.S. Surgeon General,” Trump said in the post.

Cassidy is one of several Republican lawmakers seeking reelection this year whom the President has publicly criticized and declined to endorse, choosing instead to back their primary challengers.

While the balance of power in Washington is at stake in the upcoming November midterm elections, Cassidy’s seat is unlikely to flip; the Cook Political Report ranks it as “Solid Republican.”