Trump-endorsed Louisiana Rep. Julia Letlow defeated State Treasurer John Fleming in the state’s Senate Republican primary runoff Saturday — marking the latest display of the president’s primary election pull.
Letlow will be the GOP’s nominee come November, having received over 55% of the vote compared to Fleming’s 45%, with 41% of the votes counted.
Trump endorsed Letlow – elected in 2021 to fill the seat of her husband Luke, who died of complications from COVID-19 – in January in advance of the May primary, helping take down incumbent Sen. Bill Cassidy in a three-way race.
Her contest with Fleming tightened in a series of polls this month after she came in first in the primary.
Democrat Jamie Davis secured his party’s nomination with over 78% of the vote, his opponent, Gary Crockett received only 21% of the vote.
The president had a series of clashes with Cassidy, who voted to impeach him in 2021 after the Jan. 5 Capitol riot on “incitement of insurrection,” although Cassidy also provided a critical vote to confirm Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. as Health and Human Services Secretary.
Trump repeatedly blasted his “disloyalty” and declared his career “OVER.”
The tension lingered after Cassidy’s defeat, and the two got into a shouting match in a closed Senate luncheon last week when Cassidy joined three other Republicans in voting against the president on an Iran War Powers resolution.
Fleming, 74, the state Treasurer, served in Congress from 2009 to 2017. He also previously served as Deputy White House Chief of Staff at the tail end of Trump’s first term.
Both had conservative positions and jockeyed to show their support for Trump’s agenda.
Despite Trump’s endorsement of Letlow, he called himself the MAGA conservative in the race, and rapped Letlow for prior support of diversity, equity and inclusion programs.
But the president made a series of online posts to boost Letlow, 45, in the final days of the race.
On Friday he called her a “Highly Respected America First Congresswoman” and a “Great Star” as well as a “TOTAL WINNER” and “wonderful person” who has been “tested at the highest and most difficult levels.”
Letlow beat Fleming 45-28 in the May primary, with Cassidy coming in third at 25%.
But polls in recent days showed a tightening race in what was expected to be a low-turnout election.
Trump has achieved a success rate of 98% in his endorsements, according to Ballotpedia, although that includes candidates who didn’t have an opponent, and there have been contested races where Trump took a pass or jumped in after a candidate had pulled ahead.
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