Sen. Bill Cassidy finished third in Saturday's primary, failing to advance to a runoff as Trump-backed Rep. Julia Letlow led the field.
5:47 AM
Sen. Bill Cassidy was denied a third term by Louisiana Republican primary voters Saturday, finishing third in a race that became a test of former President Trump's influence within the party.
With 92 percent of the vote counted, Rep. Julia Letlow, who carried Trump's endorsement, led with 44.8 percent. State Treasurer John Fleming placed second with 28.4 percent. Cassidy trailed with 24.7 percent. The Associated Press projected Letlow and Fleming as the two candidates advancing to a June 27 runoff.
Cassidy, a veteran lawmaker and former physician who chairs the Senate health committee, was one of seven Republican senators who voted to convict Trump following the January 6th Capitol riot. That vote placed him at odds with Trump and his political base.
Trump made his opposition to Cassidy's reelection explicit in the final days before Saturday's vote. On Truth Social, Trump called Cassidy a "disloyal disaster" and a "sleazebag," stating that Cassidy's 2020 campaign centered on supporting Trump before he "turned around and voted to IMPEACH me." Trump predicted Cassidy would "get CLOBBERED" and reiterated his endorsement of Letlow on Friday as he returned to Washington from a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
After the race was called, Trump posted on Truth Social: "Bill Cassidy . . . voted to impeach me on preposterous charges that were fake then, and now, are criminally insane! His disloyalty to the man who got him elected has cost him his seat in the Senate."
Letlow, a political newcomer and millennial MAGA loyalist, benefited from Trump's backing. Fleming, the state treasurer, secured the second spot in the runoff without Trump's explicit support.
The primary outcome resolved a question about whether Trump's endorsement would prove decisive in removing a senator who had broken ranks on impeachment. Cassidy's defeat means he will not seek a third term in the Senate.
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