Julia Letlow secured the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate in Louisiana after defeating state Treasurer John Fleming in a runoff election, continuing the trend of candidates backed by former President Donald Trump winning GOP contests.
Incumbent Senator Bill Cassidy, who had previously opposed Trump’s impeachment, failed to qualify for the runoff, becoming the first Republican senator to lose renomination since 2012.
Letlow’s victory is viewed as another affirmation of Trump’s endorsement power as the former president seeks to place loyal allies in Congress during his final term.
In the initial primary, Letlow led with a double‑digit margin over Fleming, while Cassidy placed third; because no candidate achieved a majority, the top two advanced to the runoff.
Trump publicly praised Cassidy’s defeat, while Cassidy, addressing supporters after conceding, emphasized the importance of accepting electoral outcomes without contesting results.
Letlow, who won a House seat in 2021 after her husband’s untimely death, highlighted the support she received from Trump and Governor Jeff Landry throughout her Senate campaign.
Fleming, a former congressman and former White House deputy chief of staff, positioned himself as the most conservative option in the primary field.
Looking ahead to the general election, Letlow is expected to face either farmer Jamie Davis or Navy veteran Gary Crockett, who emerged from the Democratic runoff.
Recent weeks have shown Trump’s endorsements influencing GOP primaries across multiple states, leading to the ouster of incumbents in Indiana, Kentucky, Texas, and Louisiana.
However, his endorsement streak encountered a setback in Iowa, where his last‑minute support for a gubernatorial candidate was insufficient to secure a victory.
In South Carolina, Trump‑backed candidates prevailed in both the lieutenant governor’s race and the Senate primary, with the latter avoiding a runoff.
Trump‑endorsed candidates also won Senate runoffs in Alabama and Georgia, defeating opponents who had support from other prominent conservatives.
Conversely, in Georgia’s gubernatorial runoff, the Trump‑backed lieutenant governor was defeated by a billionaire outsider.
In upstate New York, a first‑time candidate with Trump’s endorsement won the race to replace a retiring Republican representative.
South Carolina’s Republican gubernatorial runoff concluded with a landslide victory for the state attorney general, who also received Trump’s endorsement.
