Sen. Bill Cassidy Wins Louisiana Republican Primary

"People are calling my office to say they tried to vote for me, but they could not," Cassidy told reporters on a call Friday.

"People are confused ... " Cassidy's 2021 vote to convict Trump has been a central point of contention. Most of the seven Republican senators who voted to convict have since retired or left office.

Susan Collins of Maine and Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska remain. Collins faces no primary challenge this year while Murkowski won reelection in 2022 under Alaska's unique nonpartisan system. Voter reactions at events like the crawfish festival in Breaux Bridge reflected the divide.

Others, including St. Martin Parish GOP Chair Kelby Daigle, backed him and expressed concern that the party had become too focused on Trump personally rather than conservative principles.

Cassidy has also faced criticism from the Make America Healthy Again movement over his clashes with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on vaccine policy, even though he cast the key vote to confirm Kennedy.

The senator opposed Trump's nominee for surgeon general, Casey Means, an ally of Kennedy, saying she lacked the votes for confirmation. A PAC aligned with the movement has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars opposing Cassidy. Campaign spending in the race has exceeded $30 million.

Ads supporting Cassidy totaled $21.8 million while those boosting Letlow reached $9.8 million and pro-Fleming efforts hit $1.5 million, according to AdImpact. The Cassidy campaign has attacked Letlow over past support for diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives during her time at the University of Louisiana. Letlow has said she fought DEI efforts in Congress.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, has described his relationships with all three candidates as close but has not endorsed. Senate Majority Leader John Thune praised Cassidy as "a terrific senator for Louisiana" and said GOP leadership's role is to support incumbents.

Cassidy has appealed to voters by emphasizing his independence and willingness to make difficult decisions based on facts, drawing from his experience as a physician.

He has courted independents and even some Democrats who value his occasional breaks with party leadership. At the same time, he has worked to reassure Trump supporters by pointing to concrete legislative achievements signed into law by the president. >"Bill Cassidy has been a terrific senator for Louisiana.

" — Senate Majority Leader John Thune, Thursday (NBC News) The outcome will help determine how many Republicans willing to occasionally break with Trump remain in the Senate. Cassidy has expressed confidence he will win reelection, either outright or in a runoff against Fleming if Letlow fails to advance.