GOP's Julia Letlow elected to House seat initially won by late husband who died of COVID-19


Republican Julia Letlow won a special election Saturday in Louisiana's 5th Congressional District, capturing more than 50 percent of the vote, which allowed her to avoid a runoff. The seat Letlow was vying for was won by her late husband, Luke Letlow, last year, shortly before he died of complications from COVID-19 in December. He was never sworn in to Congress.
"What was born out of the terrible tragedy of losing my husband, Luke, has become my mission in his honor to carry the torch and serve the good people of Louisiana's 5th district," Letlow said in a statement after her victory.
Elsewhere in Louisiana, Democratic state Sens. Troy Carter and Karen Carter Peterson qualified for a runoff vote on April 24 that will determine who replaces former Rep. Cedric Richmond (D-La.) in the state's 2nd Congressional District. Richmond is now a senior adviser to President Biden.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Carter, who has Richmond's endorsement, won 36 percent of the vote and Peterson picked up 23 percent in the safely blue district. The runoff may be hard-fought, The New York Times writes, "given the intensity and history" of the candidates' political rivalry. Read more at The New York Times and NBC News.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
5 biting editorial cartoons about 'Alligator Alcatraz'
Cartoons Artists take on dangerous green things, historical precedent, and more
-
A journey into the deep past on beautiful Arran
The Week Recommends New Unesco Global Geopark played a 'key role' in the birth of modern geological science
-
China's London super-embassy
The Explainer The People's Republic wants to build a massive new embassy in central London, and a lot of people aren't happy about it
-
Kennedy's vaccine panel signals skepticism, change
Speed Read RFK Jr.'s new vaccine advisory board intends to make changes to the decades-old US immunization system
-
Kennedy ousts entire CDC vaccine advisory panel
speed read Health Secretary RFK Jr. is a longtime anti-vaccine activist who has criticized the panel of experts
-
RFK Jr. scraps Covid shots for pregnant women, kids
Speed Read The Health Secretary announced a policy change without informing CDC officials
-
New FDA chiefs limit Covid-19 shots to elderly, sick
speed read The FDA set stricter approval standards for booster shots
-
US overdose deaths plunged 27% last year
speed read Drug overdose still 'remains the leading cause of death for Americans aged 18-44,' said the CDC
-
Trump seeks to cut drug prices via executive order
speed read The president's order tells pharmaceutical companies to lower prescription drug prices, but it will likely be thrown out by the courts
-
RFK Jr. visits Texas as 2nd child dies from measles
Speed Read An outbreak of the vaccine-preventable disease continues to grow following a decade of no recorded US measles deaths
-
Shingles vaccine cuts dementia risk, study finds
Speed Read Getting vaccinated appears to significantly reduce the chances of developing Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia