Louisiana's 1st Congressional District election, 2026
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| Louisiana's 1st Congressional District |
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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 |
All U.S. House districts, including the 1st Congressional District of Louisiana, are holding elections in 2026. The general election is November 3, 2026. The primary is May 16, 2026, and a primary runoff is June 27, 2026. The filing deadline is February 13, 2026. For more information about the primaries in this election, click on the links below:
- Louisiana's 1st Congressional District election, 2026 (May 16 Democratic primary)
- Louisiana's 1st Congressional District election, 2026 (May 16 Republican primary)
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.
General election
The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.
General election for U.S. House Louisiana District 1
Incumbent Steve Scalise (R), Lauren Jewett (D), Donna Major (D), and Candida Pagel (D) are running in the general election for U.S. House Louisiana District 1 on November 3, 2026.
Candidate | ||
 | Steve Scalise (R) | |
 | Lauren Jewett (D) | |
| Donna Major (D) | ||
| Candida Pagel (D) | ||
| ||||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
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.
Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses
Ballotpedia asks all federal, state, and local candidates to complete a survey and share what motivates them on political and personal levels. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
No candidate in this race has completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey. Ballotpedia is seeking 100 percent participation so voters can learn more about all the candidates on their ballots.
You can ask candidates in this race to fill out the survey by clicking their names below:
Campaign finance
| Name | Party | Receipts* | Disbursements** | Cash on hand | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steve Scalise | Republican Party | $6,004,334 | $5,130,167 | $5,005,320 | As of September 30, 2025 |
| Lauren Jewett | Democratic Party | $8,223 | $871 | $7,352 | As of September 30, 2025 |
| Donna Major | Democratic Party | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available*** |
| Candida Pagel | Democratic Party | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available*** |
|
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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General election race ratings
- See also: Race rating definitions and methods
Ballotpedia provides race ratings from four outlets: The Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, Sabato's Crystal Ball, and DDHQ/The Hill. Each race rating indicates if one party is perceived to have an advantage in the race and, if so, the degree of advantage:
- Safe and Solid ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge and the race is not competitive.
- Likely ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge, but an upset is possible.
- Lean ratings indicate that one party has a small edge, but the race is competitive.[1]
- Toss-up ratings indicate that neither party has an advantage.
Race ratings are informed by a number of factors, including polling, candidate quality, and election result history in the race's district or state.[2][3][4]
| Race ratings: Louisiana's 1st Congressional District election, 2026 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Race tracker | Race ratings | ||||||||
| 1/13/2026 | 1/6/2026 | 12/23/2025 | 12/16/2025 | ||||||
| The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter | Solid Republican | Solid Republican | Solid Republican | Solid Republican | |||||
| Decision Desk HQ and The Hill | Pending | Pending | Pending | Pending | |||||
| Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales | Solid Republican | Solid Republican | Solid Republican | Solid Republican | |||||
| Larry J. Sabato's Crystal Ball | Safe Republican | Safe Republican | Safe Republican | Safe Republican | |||||
| Note: Ballotpedia reviews external race ratings every week throughout the election season and posts weekly updates even if the media outlets have not revised their ratings during that week. | |||||||||
Ballot access
The table below details filing requirements for U.S. House 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. House candidates, 2026 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | Office | Party | Signatures required | Filing fee | Filing deadline | Source |
| Louisiana | U.S. House | Democratic or Republican | 750 | $1,500 | 2/13/2026 | Source |
| Louisiana | U.S. House | Unaffiliated | 750 | N/A | 2/13/2026 | Source |
District history
The section below details election results for this office in elections dating back to 2020.
Louisiana elections use the majority-vote system. All candidates compete in the same primary, and a candidate can win the election outright by receiving more than 50 percent of the vote. If no candidate does, the top two vote recipients from the primary advance to the general election, regardless of their partisan affiliation.
General election
The general election scheduled for December 7, 2024, was canceled.
Nonpartisan primary
Nonpartisan primary election for U.S. House Louisiana District 1
Incumbent Steve Scalise (R) won election outright against Mel Manuel (D), Randall Arrington (R), Ross Shales (R), and Frankie Hyers (Unaffiliated) in the primary for U.S. House Louisiana District 1 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Steve Scalise (R) | 66.8 | 238,842 |
 | Mel Manuel (D) | 24.0 | 85,911 | |
 | Randall Arrington (R) | 5.0 | 17,856 | |
 | Ross Shales (R) | 2.3 | 8,330 | |
 | Frankie Hyers (Unaffiliated) | 1.9 | 6,781 | |
| Total votes: 357,720 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
Louisiana elections use the majority-vote system. All candidates compete in the same primary, and a candidate can win the election outright by receiving more than 50 percent of the vote. If no candidate does, the top two vote recipients from the primary advance to the general election, regardless of their partisan affiliation.
General election
The general election scheduled for December 10, 2022, was canceled.
Nonpartisan primary
Nonpartisan primary election for U.S. House Louisiana District 1
Incumbent Steve Scalise (R) won election outright against Katie Darling (D) and Howard Kearney (L) in the primary for U.S. House Louisiana District 1 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Steve Scalise (R) | 72.8 | 177,670 |
 | Katie Darling (D) | 25.2 | 61,467 | |
 | Howard Kearney (L) | 2.0 | 4,907 | |
| Total votes: 244,044 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Louisiana elections use the majority-vote system. All candidates compete in the same primary, and a candidate can win the election outright by receiving more than 50 percent of the vote. If no candidate does, the top two vote recipients from the primary advance to the general election, regardless of their partisan affiliation.
General election
The general election scheduled for December 5, 2020, was canceled.
Nonpartisan primary
Nonpartisan primary election for U.S. House Louisiana District 1
Incumbent Steve Scalise (R) won election outright against Lee Ann Dugas (D) and Howard Kearney (L) in the primary for U.S. House Louisiana District 1 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Steve Scalise (R) | 72.2 | 270,330 |
 | Lee Ann Dugas (D) | 25.3 | 94,730 | |
| | Howard Kearney (L) | 2.5 | 9,309 | |
| Total votes: 374,369 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- John Robert Badger (Independent Conservative Democratic Party)
District analysis
Click the tabs below to view information about voter composition, past elections, and demographics in both the district and the state.
- District map - A map of the district in place for the election.
- Competitiveness - Information about the competitiveness of 2026 U.S. House elections in the state.
- Presidential elections - Information about presidential elections in the district and the state.
- State party control - The partisan makeup of the state's congressional delegation and state government.
Below is the district map in place for this election. Click the map below to enlarge it.
Partisan Voter Index
Heading into the 2026 elections, based on results from the 2024 and 2020 presidential elections, the Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district is R+19. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were 19 percentage points more Republican than the national average. This made Louisiana's 1st the 37th most Republican district nationally.[5]
2020 presidential election results
The table below shows what the vote in the 2024 presidential election was in this district. The presidential election data was compiled by The Downballot.
Kamala Harris  | Donald Trump  |
|---|---|
| 30.0% | 68.0% |
Presidential voting history
- See also: Presidential election in Louisiana, 2024
Louisiana presidential election results (1900-2024)
- 17 Democratic wins
- 13 Republican wins
- 2 other wins
Congressional delegation
The table below displays the partisan composition of Louisiana's congressional delegation as of October 2025.
| Congressional Partisan Breakdown from Louisiana | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | U.S. Senate | U.S. House | Total |
| Democratic | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Republican | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| Independent | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Vacancies | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 2 | 6 | 8 |
State executive
The table below displays the officeholders in Louisiana's top four state executive offices as of October 2025.
| Office | Officeholder |
|---|---|
| Governor | Jeff Landry |
| Lieutenant Governor | Billy Nungesser |
| Secretary of State | Nancy Landry |
| Attorney General | Liz Murrill |
State legislature
Louisiana State Senate
| Party | As of October 2025 | |
|---|---|---|
| Democratic Party | 11 | |
| Republican Party | 28 | |
| Other | 0 | |
| Vacancies | 0 | |
| Total | 39 | |
Louisiana House of Representatives
| Party | As of October 2025 | |
|---|---|---|
| Democratic Party | 32 | |
| Republican Party | 73 | |
| Other | 0 | |
| Vacancies | 0 | |
| Total | 105 | |
Trifecta control
Louisiana Party Control: 1992-2025
Eight years of Democratic trifectas • Seven years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.
| Year | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governor | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R |
| Senate | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
| House | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Inside Elections also uses Tilt ratings to indicate an even smaller advantage and greater competitiveness.
- ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Nathan Gonzalez," April 19, 2018
- ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Kyle Kondik," April 19, 2018
- ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Charlie Cook," April 22, 2018
- ↑ Cook Political Report, "2025 Cook PVI℠: District Map and List (119th Congress)," accessed July 1, 2025
- ↑ States' Rights Democratic Party
- ↑ American Independent Party
