Trump-Backed Louisiana Primary Puts GOP Sen. Bill Cassidy at Risk Ahead of Midterms
Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy is facing a politically dangerous primary in Louisiana as President Donald Trump intensifies efforts to remove Republican officials who broke with him after the 2020 election and Jan. 6 fallout.
Cassidy, who voted to convict Trump during the 2021 impeachment trial, is competing against Trump-backed Rep. Julia Letlow and former Rep. John Fleming in one of the highest-profile Republican Senate primaries of the 2026 cycle.
Polling compiled by RealClearPolitics shows Cassidy struggling to consolidate Republican support in a state Trump carried comfortably. Trump has repeatedly attacked Cassidy publicly, calling him “disloyal” and backing Letlow’s campaign.
The race also marks Louisiana’s first major federal election under a new partisan primary system after lawmakers ended the state’s longtime jungle primary structure. Political analysts say the change may benefit more ideologically conservative candidates while reducing crossover support that could have helped Cassidy survive.
Subscribe free for daily political analysis they won’t broadcast. Join 110K+ readers →
The Louisiana contest is emerging as an early test of Trump’s continued dominance over Republican primaries nationwide. A Cassidy defeat would represent one of the clearest examples yet of Trump-aligned voters removing a sitting Republican senator viewed as insufficiently loyal to the president.
The broader implications could extend beyond Louisiana. Republican incumbents and candidates across several states are closely watching whether Trump-backed challengers continue reshaping the GOP ahead of the 2026 midterms.
If no candidate wins a majority, the race could move to a runoff later this summer.
Subscribe free for daily political analysis they won’t broadcast. Join 110K+ readers →