BATON ROUGE — Louisiana voters cast ballots on Saturday in Republican and Democratic runoff elections to choose their parties' nominees for an open U.S. Senate seat, with the Republican contest drawing the greatest attention in a state where the GOP has held a strong electoral advantage in recent years. Polls were scheduled to remain open until 8 p.m. local time, according to the Louisiana Secretary of State.
The runoffs follow Louisiana's May 16 party primary, in which no candidate secured the majority required to avoid a second round. The Republican nominee will advance to the Nov. 3 general election to compete for the seat being vacated after incumbent Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy was eliminated in the primary. Democrats also held a runoff to determine their nominee.
In the Republican race, U.S. Rep. Julia Letlow faced Louisiana State Treasurer John Fleming. Letlow led the initial primary with about 45% of the vote, while Fleming finished second with roughly 28%, according to certified election reporting cited by election officials and the Associated Press. Cassidy placed third and did not advance.
Former President Donald Trump endorsed Letlow before the runoff, making the contest a closely watched test of his influence in Republican primaries. Fleming, a former congressman who also served in the Trump administration, campaigned on his conservative record and sought to persuade Republican voters that he represented the stronger choice for the party's base.
The Democratic runoff matched Jamie Davis, a farmer from Tensas Parish, against Gary Crockett, a defense contractor from New Orleans. The Democratic winner will face the Republican nominee in November.
Louisiana conducted the Senate contests under its closed party primary system, allowing registered Republicans and Democrats to vote only in their respective party runoffs, while voters registered with no party affiliation could choose either party's ballot but not both, according to the Secretary of State's election guidance. The ballot also included several local runoff races and propositions in parts of the state.
Secretary of State election information stated that early voting took place from June 12 through June 20, excluding designated non-voting days, before Saturday's runoff. State officials encouraged voters to confirm polling locations and sample ballots through the state's election resources before voting.
As polls closed, no official statewide results had been released. Election officials were expected to begin reporting vote totals after voting ended, with nominees to be determined once ballots were counted and certified under Louisiana election procedures.
