The louisiana delegation

congressional officials …

Louisiana is a highly influential congressional delegation with both the House Speaker and House Majority Leader as members.

Of the eight class members, seven are male, and one is female. Two are minority representation. Three are lawyers, one is a medical doctor, and one member has a doctorate.

The average tenure for the delegation is 3.7 terms, assuming everyone completes their service through the end of 2026. The longest-serving member has been in Congress for nine terms.

One member of the Kentucky delegation is a freshman and one of the Senators is up for re-election in 2026.

When you look at these profiles, we have given each a letter grade for their effort this Congress, based on various factors, which you will find in What Is Thomas Looking For? These letter grades are probably pretty familiar to you if you have ever been a school student (we hope the answer to that is we all have!)

If you see a meager score for a particular member, it will probably be due to one or two key factors: ethics challenges or anti-democratic behavior.

Republicans have been hit hard on their lack of push back on former and now current President Trump and their support of election denying in the 2020 presidential campaign. The unanswered soaring deficit on their watch, the dismantling of allied relationships around the globe, and opposition to funding anti-authoritarian initiatives. The denial of climate change weighs heavily on us as well. We make no secret that transparency and Government in the Sunshine are important to us, and we further argue that some have been awful stewards of this category. For example, four of the eight (one-half) Louisiana delegation members voted to overturn the 2020 presidential election results the same evening as Trump supporters stormed the United States Capitol.
Democrats have been hit hard for their lack of progress on key matters because they do control the United States Senate and have a razor-close margin in the U.S. House of Representatives. They have not been, in our opinion, innovative or necessarily insistent on finding rational, reasonable solutions to the problems plaguing the American public today. We want to see more and better.
Both have been dinged for being too partisan and not collaborative where evident. In our opinion, being too doctrinaire or an obstructionist to good government in the 21st century, which several members of the Louisiana delegation represent, does not get one a good grade from Thomas.

We also indicate what we believe might be the outcome of these Members’ 2026 elections today. The overwhelming majority of House members were re-elected in 2024.

Our prospect ratings fall into three categories:

Safe Bet - which means what it means. These members of Congress are running strong and look to be overwhelming prospects for re-election at this time. However, we reserve the right to re-categorize their chances if necessary.
It’s A Race - means this race is too close to call, and we can not reasonably predict who will win this seat.
Nudging - means the seat is leaning one way or another for this candidate. We have just a small number of current members of Congress in this category. Stay tuned!

So, would you like to meet these fascinating Louisianians? If so, keep reading on!

what is thomas looking for?

There are no vulnerable seats in Louisiana in 2026 for Thomas to watch but we will clearly be tracking what the House Speaker and the House Majority Leader do in this Congress where American democracy is concerned.

the senators

United States Senator bill cassidy (r)

U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy is completing his second-term member of the Senate and is a physician who graduated with both degrees from Louisiana State University. Married and the father of three, Senator Cassidy chairs the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee. He also serves on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee; the Finance Committee; and the Veterans’ Affairs Committee. The senator was censured by the Louisiana Republican State Party for voting to convict President Donald J. Trump during his second impeachment for inciting the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol to prevent the Electoral College vote from being approved by Congress.

Thomas Take: Up for re-election in 2026

Thomas Rank: A

Website

United states senator john neely kennedy (R)

Louisiana’s junior senator is serving his second term. An undergraduate of Vanderbilt University who attended Oxford University and earned a law degree from the University of Virginia, Kennedy serves on the Appropriations Committee; the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee; and the Budget Committee; the Judiciary Committee. The married father of one ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate in 2004 and 2008. He was a Democrat until 2007.

Thomas Take: Not up for re-election in 2024.

Thomas Rank: D

Website

the representatives

district 1 - u.s. rep. steve scalise (r)

Congressman Steve Scalise is the House Majority Leader. His district includes the suburbs of New Orleans. Scalise ran unsuccessfully for Speaker to replace Kevin McCarthy when he was ousted by the Republican Conference in 2023. The Majority Leader was first elected in a special election in 2008 and is serving his ninth term in the House. He is a graduate of Louisiana State University, is married, and the father of three. In June of 2017, Congressman Scalise was shot and seriously wounded by an anti-Trump domestic terrorist during a congressional baseball game.

Thomas Take: Safe Bet Republican

Thomas Rank: D

Website

district 2 - U.S. Rep. Troy carter (D)

Congressman Troy Carter is Louisiana’s only Democrat in the congressional delegation. Now a third-term member, he was first elected in a special election in 2021. A graduate of Xavier University of Louisiana, Congressman Carter serves on the Energy and Commerce Committee. The married father of two congressman represents New Orleans in Congress.

Thomas Take: Safe Bet Democrat

Thomas Rank: B

Website

District 3 - U.S. Rep. clay higgins (r)

Representing southwestern and south central Louisiana in his fifth term in Congress, Clay Higgins attended Louisiana State University and served in the Army and Louisiana National Guard. He serves on the Homeland Security Committee and the Oversight and Government Reform Committee. A law enforcement officer, the father of four has embraced several controversial fringe groups during his terms in Congress.

Thomas Take: Safe Bet Republican

Thomas Rank: F

Website

District 4 - U.S. speaker of the house mike johnson (r)

Representing northwestern Louisiana in Congress including the Shreveport area, House Speaker Mike Johnson is a five-term member who replaced Kevin McCarthy as Speaker in 2023 after several previous nominees failed to win approval for the role. Re-elected Speaker in 2025, the married and father of four Johnson has both an undergraduate and law degree from Louisiana State University. He has been an outspoken proponent for President Trump’s legally-denied claim that the 2020 presidential election was stolen.

Thomas Take: Safe Bet Republican

Thomas Rank: D

Website

district 5 - U.S. rep. julia letlow (R)

Representing the rural areas of northeastern and central Louisiana, Congresswoman Letlow was elected in a special election in 2021 to replace her late husband who was elected to the seat but died from COVID-19 before being sworn into office. A graduate of the University of Louisiana with both a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree, the now third-term Letlow also earned a doctorate from the University of South Florida. The mother of two serves on the Appropriations Committee.

Thomas Take: Safe Bet Republican

Thomas Rank: B

Website

district 6 - U.S. rep. cleo fields (d)

The sixth district of Louisiana includes the Baton Rouge area and is represented by freshman Congressman Cleo Fields. The married father of two, graduated with a Bachelor’s and law degree from Southern University. He is a member of the Finance Committee.

Thomas Take: Safe Bet Democrat

Thomas Rank: Too early to rank

Website

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