Will Louisiana Republican Party withhold endorsement in Bill Cassidy's Senate race election?

Yahoo

4 days ago

A member of Louisiana's Republican Party governing board is proposing a resolution to prohibit the central committee from endorsing a candidate in the state's 2026 Senate closed GOP primary, where incumbent Republican Bill Cassidy is seeking reelection.
State Rep. Mike Bayham of Chalmette said his resolution isn't targeting any particular candidate, though Bayham conceded he can't remember the party ever withholding an endorsement for any incumbent Republican in Congress.
Bayham said the state's first closed primary elections in more than a decade negates the need to endorse a candidate as the party has done in previous open primary elections in which Republicans and Democrats are all on the ballot.
"This is one of the arguments the party has made for years for the closed primaries; let's back it up," said Bayham, a longtime elected member of the central committee, in an interview with USA Today Network. "Why hold closed primaries if we're not going to let the voters decide?
"An open primary is completely different because we may need to coalesce behind a Republican to make sure we have a candidate in the runoff."
Cassidy traditionally would have a clear glide path to reelection among Louisiana's deepening Republican electorate, but his 2021 vote to convict President Trump following the Jan. 6 insurrection has emboldened other Republicans to challenge the state's senior U.S. senator.
State Treasurer John Fleming, state Sen. Blake Miguez, Public Service Commissioner Eric Skrmetta and political outsider Sammy Wyatt all have announced campaigns to unseat Cassidy in the GOP primary on April 18, 2026.
Two other Republicans, Congresswoman Julia Letlow and state Rep. Julie Emerson, also are thought to be considering the race.
Bayham hopes his resolution will get a vote at the Republican State Central Committee's Aug. 23 general membership meeting, but he said it must first be advanced by the board's Rules Committee on Thursday.
USA Today Network is seeking comment from Republican Party Chairman Derek Babcock.
Bayham was one of the state central committee members who orchestrated a vote to censure Cassidy in 2021 after the senator's vote to convict Trump in the president's second impeachment trial.
Bayham said he doesn't believe Cassidy has been able to win back the support of many MAGA Republicans, despite the senator's consistent backing of Trump during the president's second term.
"(Cassidy) will face a tough road," Bayham said. "If you polled the committee I think the results would be overwhelming against Bill."
More: Who's in, who's out, who's considering Louisiana 2026 Senate race with Trump shadow looming
Greg Hilburn covers state politics for the USA TODAY Network of Louisiana. Follow him on Twitter @GregHilburn1.
This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: Will Louisiana Republicans endorse in Senate primary with Bill Cassidy?