Louisiana Republican voters already rejected an incumbent senator who was crossways with President Donald Trump. In a primary runoff on Saturday, they’ll decide whether to follow Trump’s lead in choosing a new nominee. Rep. Julia Letlow, who is endorsed by Trump, faces state Treasurer John Fleming in a contest that is all but certain to determine the next senator in the deep-red state.

Background

They are vying to replace Sen. Bill Cassidy, a two-term Republican who finished third in the May 16 primary. Along with Texas Sen. John Cornyn, Cassidy is one of two GOP incumbents ousted in primaries this spring after Trump opposed them. The president’s bid for vengeance in Louisiana came after Cassidy voted in 2021 to convict Trump during his second impeachment trial.

In the primary, Letlow earned the most votes with nearly 45% support, followed by Fleming at 28% and Cassidy at almost 25%. Because no candidate received a majority, the top two finishers advanced to the runoff.

Trump’s Endorsement

Trump on Thursday night held a telephone rally for Letlow. He said he has seen Letlow “tested at the highest level” and has “been a fearless champion for the people of your great state, right from the beginning.” The president praised Letlow’s vote for his sweeping tax and spending measure last year, touted her support for his immigration enforcement efforts and said she would back his elections bill that would broadly ban mail-in voting, require voter identification and more.

Despite Trump’s endorsement, the ideological differences in the GOP race are relatively scant. Fleming, 74, has campaigned on his support for a “pro-Trump agenda.” In one ad, Fleming’s campaign touts his time working in the White House during the first Trump administration, brags that he “opposes liberal nonsense” and describes Fleming as a “MAGA conservative,” using the acronym for Trump’s “Make America Great Again” movement.

Original reporting: KRDO (Colorado Springs metro) — read the source article.