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Sen. Bill Cassidy\u2019s (R-LA) reelection effort is under mounting pressure as Louisiana\u2019s Republican Senate primary enters its final weeks, with the incumbent lashing out at GOP allies and facing the possibility of missing the runoff altogether in an increasingly volatile three-way race.<\/span><\/p>\n Just five weeks before Louisiana Republicans vote on May 16, Cassidy finds himself squeezed between <\/span>Trump-endorsed <\/span><\/a>Rep. Julia Letlow and Louisiana Treasurer John Fleming, the former congressman and <\/span>founding member <\/span><\/a>of the House Freedom Caucus.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n According to <\/span>Punchbowl News<\/span><\/a>, Cassidy is \u201cfurious at the NRSC and Senate Majority Leader John Thune\u2019s political machine because he feels they haven\u2019t fully supported his reelection bid.\u201d Although Thune raised more than $650,000 for Cassidy at a January event in Baton Rouge and the NRSC \u201chas also cut video ads featuring Cassidy,\u201d Cassidy still complained that the committee \u201cwasn\u2019t spending enough on his behalf during the primary.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Punchbowl further reported that NRSC Executive Director Jennifer DeCasper, \u201cin a response that included profanity,\u201d told Cassidy he \u201cshouldn\u2019t have voted to convict Trump.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n That vote remains the central issue hanging over Cassidy\u2019s campaign. In February 2021, Cassidy <\/span>voted<\/span><\/a> to convict Trump during the president\u2019s second impeachment trial. He later said, \u201cI voted to convict President Trump because he is guilty.\u201d Cassidy subsequently argued in multiple interviews that Trump could not win another general election, said he would not support him in 2024, urged Trump to leave the race in 2023, and even signaled openness to a third-party No Labels effort.<\/span><\/p>\n Those comments <\/span>left<\/span><\/a> Cassidy deeply vulnerable in a Louisiana Republican primary, particularly after the state moved away from its old jungle-primary system and adopted closed Republican primaries beginning in 2024. Under the previous system, Cassidy could rely on support from independents, moderates, and Democrats. Now, only Republican voters will determine the outcome.<\/span><\/p>\n Politico<\/em> <\/span>reported<\/span><\/a> that some Louisiana Republicans now see Cassidy as a politician without a natural political base. John Couvillon, a pollster working for Fleming, said, \u201cNumber one, you have a mistrust of Senator Cassidy amongst Republican based voters. Number two, since he does have a relatively Republican voting record, that doesn\u2019t get him any great affections from Democrats either. So he\u2019s kind of the proverbial man without a political country.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Punchbowl News <\/span>noted<\/span><\/a> that it was highly unlikely any candidate would clear 50 percent in the May 16 primary, making a June runoff likely. Republican insiders told Punchbowl that all three candidates had a realistic chance of advancing, but many believed either Letlow or Fleming would defeat Cassidy in a head-to-head runoff.<\/span><\/p>\n Cassidy has heavily outspent Letlow and her allies. Punchbowl News reported that Cassidy and allied groups began the year with a collective $26 million in the bank, while Politico<\/em>, <\/span>citing<\/span> AdImpact, reported that Cassidy\u2019s campaign and the Louisiana Freedom Fund had poured more than $14 million into the race on ads, most of them attacking Julia Letlow. Those attacks have focused<\/a> in part on Letlow\u2019s past comments on diversity, equity, and inclusion and on her trading of defense-contractor stocks amid the war in Iran.<\/span><\/p>\n