EXCLUSIVE — Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) grew his fundraising levels in recent months at a faster pace than in previous quarters, allowing him to expand his campaign efforts at a pivotal moment to combat two serious primary opponents.
The second-term senator raised a combined $2.46 million in the first quarter of the year from January through March across his campaign, affiliated fundraising groups, and a political action committee, according to figures first shared with the Washington Examiner.
That includes roughly $750,000 from his primary campaign account, representing a slight uptick from the previous two quarters. Also included in the sum is nearly $1.5 million from joint fundraising committees and $183,000 from a political action committee.
The Louisiana Freedom Fund, a super PAC supporting Cassidy, raked in almost $6 million in the same period to bolster the incumbent, according to a source familiar with its fundraising.
The unofficial figures come ahead of a Wednesday filing deadline for the first quarter that is set to reveal the financial progress of Trump-backed Rep. Julia Letlow (R-LA) since launching her campaign in January. Louisiana Treasurer John Fleming, a former congressman, is also a leading Republican contender.
The primary is May 16. If none of the three candidates garners a majority, the top two vote-getters will head to a runoff on June 27.
Cassidy will head into the final weeks of the primary and a possible runoff with $8.5 million cash on hand across all entities, according to his campaign. Letlow’s House campaign account ended 2025, the most recent data available, with $2.46 million cash on hand, and Fleming had $2.1 million in the bank but has largely self-funded his Senate endeavor.
In a press release on Monday, the Cassidy campaign pointed to Letlow’s lack of recent TV ads and future bookings as evidence of possibly lackluster first-quarter numbers.
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National GOP leadership, including Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), is standing by Cassidy in rare defiance of President Donald Trump’s support for Letlow, though tensions have risen between the incumbent and the party’s campaign arm as Election Day draws near. Cassidy voted to convict Trump of impeachment over the 2021 Capitol riot.
Like Cassidy, Sens. John Cornyn (R-TX) and Susan Collins (R-ME) are battling for reelection without Trump’s endorsement. But unlike Maine’s battleground status and Democrats’ hopes to make inroads in Texas, Louisiana is safe territory for Republicans, meaning the primary victor is all but certain to win the general election this November.
