Bill Cassidy is facing a serious challenge for his Louisiana seat in the 2026 Louisiana Senate primary, after his vote to convict Donald Trump on impeachment charges following the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot. The Republican contest will decide whether he advances toward the general election or gets pulled into a runoff if no one wins a majority.
Mitt Romney fits this race as the kind of break-point figure voters are watching in party primaries: a senator whose vote on Trump became the defining line in his own challenge. In Louisiana, the Republican field includes Julia Letlow and Treasurer John Fleming, and vote reporting is coming through the with projections made by the NBC News Decision Desk.
Bill Cassidy in the Louisiana Senate
Cassidy’s challenge comes in Louisiana, where the Republican nominee will be heavily favored in the general election. That makes the primary the contest that matters most, because the Republican who survives it is the one most likely to hold the seat.
The race centers on Cassidy’s vote to convict Trump after the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot. That vote is the clearest reason the primary has become a serious test for the senator five years later, and it is the issue hanging over his effort to keep the seat.
Julia Letlow and John Fleming
Trump has endorsed Letlow, while the Republican field also includes John Fleming. That creates a direct contrast inside the party contest: Cassidy is running for reelection after breaking with Trump on impeachment, while Trump has backed one of Cassidy’s challengers.
The remaining vote is expected to determine whether one candidate can reach a majority or whether the race moves to a runoff. NBC News uses expected vote as an estimate based on early votes and information from county election officials on Election Day, so the remaining count is what will shape the final margin.
Louisiana runoff rules
If no candidate gets majority support, the top two vote-getters advance to a primary runoff. That means the first round may not settle the race, even if the leading candidate finishes well ahead of the rest.
For now, the live results question is simple: whether Cassidy can stay on pace to win outright, whether Letlow can turn Trump’s endorsement into a first-round lead, or whether Fleming can force the contest into the next round. The answer decides who carries the Republican nomination into November.
