United States Senate election in Louisiana, 2026 (May 16 Republican primary)
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| U.S. Senate, Louisiana |
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| Democratic primary Republican primary General election |
| Election details |
| Filing deadline: February 13, 2026 |
| Primary: May 16, 2026 Primary runoff: June 27, 2026 General: November 3, 2026 |
| How to vote |
| Poll times:
6 a.m. to 8 p.m. |
| Race ratings |
DDHQ and The Hill: Pending Inside Elections: Solid Republican Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe Republican |
| Ballotpedia analysis |
| U.S. Senate battlegrounds U.S. House battlegrounds Federal and state primary competitiveness Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2026 |
| See also |
U.S. Senate • 1st • 2nd • 3rd • 4th • 5th • 6th Louisiana elections, 2026 U.S. Congress elections, 2026 U.S. Senate elections, 2026 U.S. House elections, 2026 |
A Republican Party primary takes place on May 16, 2026, in Louisiana to determine which Republican candidate will run in the state's general election on November 3, 2026.
| Candidate filing deadline | Primary election | General election |
|---|---|---|
Heading into the election, the incumbent is Bill Cassidy (Republican), who was first elected in 2014.
In Louisiana, rules to participate in primaries vary by the office up for election. For congress, justice of the supreme court, the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, and the Public Service Commission, the state uses a semi-closed primary. In these primaries, only unaffiliated voters and voters registered with a party may vote in that party's primary. For all other statewide offices—including state senator and representative—Louisiana uses the majority-vote system. In this system, if a candidate receives a majority of the votes cast for an office, they win the election outright. If, however, no candidate reaches that threshold, a second round of voting is held between the top two vote-getters. Any registered voter can participate in both the first-round and second-round elections.[1][2]
This page focuses on Louisiana's United States Senate Republican primary. For more in-depth information on the state's Democratic primary and the general election, see the following pages:
- United States Senate election in Louisiana, 2026 (May 16 Democratic primary)
- United States Senate election in Louisiana, 2026
Candidates and election results
Note: The following list includes official candidates only. Ballotpedia defines official candidates as people who:
- Register with a federal or state campaign finance agency before the candidate filing deadline
- Appear on candidate lists released by government election agencies
Beginning in the 2026 elections, Louisiana elections for U.S. Congress, the Louisiana Supreme Court, the Public Service Commission, and the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education use a closed partisan primary and primary runoff system. Candidates for those offices no longer run in majority-vote system primaries.
Republican primary
Republican primary for U.S. Senate Louisiana
Markeda Cottonham (R) and Julia Letlow (R) are running in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Louisiana on May 16, 2026.
Candidate | ||
| Markeda Cottonham | ||
 | Julia Letlow | |
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 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Candidate profiles
There are currently no candidate profiles created for this race. Candidate profiles will appear here as they are created. Encourage the candidates in this race to complete Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey so that their profile will appear here. You can ask candidates in this race to fill out the survey by clicking their names below:
Voting information
- See also: Voting in Louisiana
Ballotpedia will publish the dates and deadlines related to this election as they are made available.
Campaign finance
| Name | Party | Receipts* | Disbursements** | Cash on hand | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Markeda Cottonham | Republican Party | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available*** |
| Julia Letlow | Republican Party | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available*** |
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Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2026. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee." |
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Ballot access
The table below details filing requirements for U.S. Senate candidates in Louisiana in the 2026 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Louisiana, click here.
| Filing requirements for U.S. Senate candidates, 2026 | ||||||
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| State | Office | Party | Signatures required | Filing fee | Filing deadline | Source |
| Louisiana | U.S. Senate | Democratic or Republican | 2,500 | $3,500.00 | 2/13/2026 | Source |
| Louisiana | U.S. Senate | Unaffiliated | 2,500 | N/A | 2/13/2026 | Source |
See also
- United States Senate election in Louisiana, 2026 (May 16 Democratic primary)
- United States Senate election in Louisiana, 2026
- United States Senate Democratic Party primaries, 2026
- United States Senate Republican Party primaries, 2026
- United States Senate elections, 2026
- U.S. Senate battlegrounds, 2026
External links
Footnotes
