Rep. Julia Letlow, R-La., the Trump-backed primary candidate challenging incumbent Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., tells Fox News Digital President Donald Trump’s endorsement is "the most powerful…in the world."
He wasn't on the ballot, but President Donald Trump was a winner in Louisiana's GOP Senate runoff election.
That's because Trump-backed Rep. Julia Letlow defeated state Treasurer John Fleming to capture the Republican nomination, The Associated Press reported on Saturday.
Six weeks after denying Trump-targeted GOP Sen. Bill Cassidy a third six-year term in the Senate, a majority of Republican voters in the solidly red Gulf Coast state backed Letlow. Her victory in the runoff is seen as another victory for Trump as he works to fill the halls of Congress with loyal lawmakers for his final two years in the White House. And it's another sign of the power of a Trump endorsement in Republican primaries.
Five years after he voted to convict Trump in his second impeachment trial, Cassidy was sent packing.
Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana fist bumps a supporter during a campaign stop at a gun retailer and firing range in Baton Rouge on May 15, 2026, the eve of the state's Senate primary. (Paul Steinhauser/Fox News)
Letlow, who was backed by Trump even before she entered the race in January, finished first in the primary, double digits ahead of Fleming, with Cassidy in third place. Since no candidate cracked 50% of the vote, Letlow and Fleming advanced to the runoff for the Republican nomination and Cassidy became the first elected Republican senator to lose renomination since Sen. Richard Lugar of Indiana in 2012.
Trump, celebrating Cassidy's defeat, said on social media that "it’s nice to see that his political career is OVER!"
Cassidy, in a speech to supporters after conceding, took a jab at Trump, saying, "When you participate in democracy, sometimes it doesn't t
