Jeff Landry’s trying to swing the Louisiana GOP Senate race. Will it work?
Why this matters: political developments that affect policy direction and public trust.
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry wants to be a kingmaker. But his efforts to elevate Rep. Julia Letlow’s Senate campaign is irritating other Republicans in the state. The first-term GOP governor has become a central figure in President Donald Trump’s revenge tour, working to boost Letlow to take down Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), who is viewed by MAGA supporters as insufficiently loyal to the president. Landry has publicly endorsed her and dispatched his chief of staff to advise her campaign. Behind the scenes, he’s been urging major donors to financially support Letlow, according to six people familiar with his pressure campaign. But his aggressive efforts are annoying Louisiana Republicans, who see him as overstepping to prop up a candidate who is struggling to dominate as the front-runner, given her relatively low name ID and the rise of another MAGA candidate: State Treasurer John Fleming. Nearly a dozen GOP lawmakers, strategists and party leaders said in interviews that they’ve long been frustrated by his efforts to strong-arm the party over his legislative priorities and see the Senate race as the latest salvo. “We're in some crazy territory where there are yes men all around the governor, and they don't do anything he doesn't want them to do, and they do everything he wants them to do,” said Kelby Daigle, St. Martin GOP parish chair, who supports Cassidy. One prominent Louisiana businessperson, granted anonymity to speak freely, said Landry had asked dozens of executives on a conference call earlier this year to donate to Letlow. The person, a Cassidy supporter, promptly hung up. “Governor Landry has gone all-in on Letlow and is pot committed at this point,” said a Louisiana Republican strategist, granted anonymity to speak freely. “It’s a gamble that could pay off big or drain his political capital.” The May 16 primary is likely headed to a run-off, and any combination of candidates may qualify. Polling shows Letlow with a slight lead over Fleming, with Cassidy in t