Randy Brown, Bossier Press-Tribune
Voters across Louisiana went to the polls Saturday, May 16, for the state’s first closed party primary election, ushering in a significant change to Louisiana’s longtime election system while producing several closely watched results in northwest Louisiana and across the state.
The new election format created confusion for some voters who were surprised to find certain races or candidates missing from their ballots because of party affiliation restrictions under the new system. Unlike Louisiana’s traditional open “jungle primary,” voters in Saturday’s election could only participate in the primary election for the political party with which they are registered.
Despite the adjustment period, voters turned out across Bossier Parish to cast ballots in several races, including the highly anticipated U.S. Senate contest and the District 5 Public Service Commission race, as well as five statewide constitutional amendments.
In Bossier Parish, the Republican primary for U.S. Senate drew the most attention. John Fleming narrowly led the field with 41% of the vote, receiving 4,950 votes. Julia Letlow followed closely with 40%, totaling 4,768 votes. Incumbent Bill Cassidy received 17% with 2,055 votes, while Mark Spencer earned 2% with 286 votes.
On the Democratic side, Jamie Davis led with 43% of the vote, followed by Gary Crockett with 30% and Nick Albares with 28%.
Statewide Republican results showed Letlow leading with 45% of the vote, followed by Fleming at 28%, Cassidy at 25% and Spencer at 2%. On the Democratic side statewide, Davis received 47%, while Gary Crockett and Nick Albares each received 26%.
Under Louisiana’s new election structure, the top two candidates from each party advance to runoff elections in June. Letlow and Fleming will advance on the Republican side, while Davis and Albares move forward in the Democratic runoff. The winners from each party will face one another on the November ballot.
Another closely watched race in north Louisiana was the District 5 Public Service Commission election. In Bossier Parish, Republican John Atkins overwhelmingly defeated Aiden Joyner with 91% of the vote, receiving 10,378 votes compared with Joyner’s 1,087 votes.
On the Democratic ballot, James Green received 73% of the vote, while Austin Lawson earned 27%. Atkins and Green will now advance to face each other on the November ballot.
Voters also weighed in on five statewide constitutional amendments, all of which were rejected statewide.
In Bossier Parish, Constitutional Amendment No. 1, regarding changes to unclassified state civil service positions, failed with 69% voting no and 31% voting yes. Constitutional Amendment No. 2, which would have granted the St. George community school system authority to operate its own school system, failed locally with 53% voting no and 47% voting yes.
Constitutional Amendment No. 3, related to funding teacher pay raises through debt reduction for the Teachers’ Retirement System of Louisiana, passed in Bossier Parish with 55% support, although it failed statewide.
Constitutional Amendment No. 4, concerning parish authority related to ad valorem tax exemptions, failed locally with 56% voting no and 44% voting yes. Constitutional Amendment No. 5, which proposed increasing the mandatory retirement age for judges from 70 to 75, was rejected in Bossier Parish with 69% voting no and 31% voting yes.
Statewide amendment results showed decisive opposition from voters. Amendment No. 1 failed with 78% voting no, Amendment No. 2 failed with 64% no, Amendment No. 3 failed with 58% no, Amendment No. 4 failed with 66% no, and Amendment No. 5 failed with 77% no.
As Louisiana continues transitioning away from its longtime open-primary tradition, Saturday’s election offered voters their first real experience with the new closed primary system — one that produced competitive races, widespread discussion and, for some voters, unexpected lessons about party registration and ballot access.