Republican Julia Letlow has won a special election for the U.S. House 5th District seat left vacant by the death of her husband, Luke Letlow, just days before he was set to take office in January.
Letlow handily won Saturday’s election with 65% of the vote. Alexandria Democrat Candy Christophe was a distant second with 27% of the vote. Only one of the remaining 10 candidates, Chad Conerly, had above 1% of the vote. The Secretary of State’s website lists turnout for the race at 21.2%.
Letlow decided to run in the race after Luke died from complications of COVID-19 earlier this year. She’s the first Republican woman elected to Congress from Louisiana.
“This is an incredible moment and it is truly hard to put into words,” Letlow said in a released statement. “What was born out of the terrible tragedy of losing my husband, Luke, has become my mission in his honor to carry the torch and serve the good people of Louisiana’s 5th District. I am humbled that you would entrust me with the honor of your vote and the privilege to serve you in Congress. A simple thank you doesn’t fully encapsulate the depth of my gratitude.”
“Whether here or in D.C., my mission is to do God’s will, and I’m going to serve, whether I’m in Alexandria, or whether I’m in D.C.,” Christophe said. “I’m very peaceful, and I’m just full of gratitude. I’m just grateful, grateful for the journey. Our individual differences are actually our God-given strength when we unite and use them together to uplift one another.”
The race for Louisiana’s other vacant U.S. House seat representing a New Orleans-based district will head to an April 24 runoff. New Orleans Democratic state Senator Troy Carter will be in that runoff and face fellow-Democratic State Senator Karen Carter Peterson. Carter garnered 36% of the vote, while Carter Peterson had 23% to narrowly edge another Democrat, Gary Chambers, Jr. The seat came open when Democrat Cedric Richmond left the position shortly after last year’s election to work for President Joe Biden.
Another race heading for a runoff is that for the BESE District 4 seat. In that race, Democrat Cassie Williams, who had 29% of the vote, will face Republican Michael Melerine, who narrowly edged fellow-Republican Shelly McFarland in a race that saw only 9.7% turnout. Former State Senator John Milkovich finished in fourth place with only 16% of the vote.
Locally, there were two mayoral races in Grant Parish. In the Town of Montgomery, Republican Carl Hale edged Democrat Clyde Baines by just 14 votes, 95-81 in a race that saw under 40% turnout. In Pollock, Republican Douglas Beavers will be the town’s new mayor after he edged Republican Deborah Tumminello, 129 to 72. Beavers will succeed the late Jerome Scott, who died in September at the age of 64.
https://www.kalb.com/2021/03/21/julia-letlow-wins-congressional-race-will-fill-late-husbands-seat/