Cedric Richmond-backed Troy Carter will fill Louisiana's vacant House seat after special election win

Troy Carter.
(Image credit: AP Photo/Melinda Deslatte)

Louisiana State Sen. Troy Carter on Saturday defeated fellow Democrat and state Sen. Karen Carter Peterson (no relation) in a special election in the state's 2nd congressional district to fill the U.S. House seat vacated by former Rep. Cedric Richmond (D-La.), who's now a senior adviser to President Biden. Carter had Richmond's backing, as well as the support of top leaders of the Congressional Black Caucus, Politico notes.

Carter also sought Republican votes during his campaign because the Black-majority district is safely Democratic, leaving GOP voters without a candidate of their own in the runoff. Peterson, who The New York Times notes is "rooted" in the Democratic Party's establishment wing but embraced the support of progressives throughout the race, attempted to link Carter to former President Donald Trump because of his Republican outreach.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

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.

Sign up
Explore More
Tim O'Donnell

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.