2026 midterms · Louisiana
Louisiana 5th District
U.S. House · primary Aug 15, 2026 · runoff Sep 19, 2026 · general election Nov 3, 2026
- candidates
- 7
- Democrats
- 1
- Republicans
- 6
candidates in the primary
The primary was held on Aug 15, 2026 (runoff Sep 19, 2026); no result is recorded yet.
The candidates
Seven candidates in the primary. One incumbent and six challengers.
Status is the FEC’s: an incumbent holds the seat, a challenger runs against one, and an open seat has no incumbent running. No result is recorded for this primary yet, so everyone running is listed.
Democrats
Challenger · 41 statements classified · $6,838 raised
Republicans
Challenger · 170 statements classified · $245.6K raised
Challenger · 16 statements classified · $658.6K raised
Incumbent · 4,163 statements classified · official profile
Challenger · 59 statements classified · $63.4K raised
Challenger · no statements on file · $0 raised
Notes
House districts follow the candidates’ FEC filings; where a state redrew its map for 2026, a candidate may appear under their old district. A sitting member is placed in the race for the seat they hold now.
What they say
The candidates’ statements differ most on policy discussion: from 12% to 65%. Five of the seven candidates have 10 or more classified statements.
An AI model reads each statement and marks the kinds of statement it contains; each bar is the share of a candidate’s statements with that label. Incumbent members of Congress are measured on everything they publish in office, everyone else on posts on X. A rate describes what was said, not whether it was right.
How do the candidates’ statements compare?
Share of each candidate’s statements with each label; grey tick: median of ranked House candidates
Personal attacks
Median 2.5% · axis 0–70%
- Foy D0%
- Cathey R10%
- Cordell R0%
- Letlow R0.3%
- Mcmakin R0%
Policy criticism
Median 15% · axis 0–70%
- Foy D0%
- Cathey R9.4%
- Cordell R6.3%
- Letlow R14%
- Mcmakin R3.4%
Policy discussion
Median 58% · axis 0–70%
- Foy D12%
- Cathey R14%
- Cordell R31%
- Letlow R65%
- Mcmakin R12%
Bipartisanship
Median 3.8% · axis 0–70%
- Foy D2.4%
- Cathey R0%
- Cordell R0%
- Letlow R4.7%
- Mcmakin R0%
Credit claiming
Median 16% · axis 0–70%
- Foy D4.9%
- Cathey R1.8%
- Cordell R0%
- Letlow R33%
- Mcmakin R6.8%
Show the data
| Candidate | Party | Statements | Personal attacks | Policy criticism | Policy discussion | Bipartisanship | Credit claiming |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Larry Foy | D | 41 | 0% | 0% | 12% | 2.4% | 4.9% |
| Stewart Cathey Jr. | R | 170 | 10% | 9.4% | 14% | 0% | 1.8% |
| Misti Cordell | R | 16 | 0% | 6.3% | 31% | 0% | 0% |
| Julia Letlow | R | 4,163 | 0.3% | 14% | 65% | 4.7% | 33% |
| Dixon Mcmakin | R | 59 | 0% | 3.4% | 12% | 0% | 6.8% |
| Median, ranked House candidates | 2.5% | 15% | 58% | 3.8% | 16% |
The five kinds of statement
Personal attacks. Overtly questions a named person’s character, integrity or loyalty, or calls them names. Criticising a record or a policy does not count.
Policy criticism. Objects to a specific policy, law or court ruling with fact-based arguments, without personal attacks or emotional appeals.
Policy discussion. Discusses a specific public policy or policy area (health care, taxes, defense, …).
Bipartisanship. Emphasises working across the aisle, compromise or common ground between the parties.
Credit claiming. Claims credit for passing legislation, securing funding or grants, or other accomplishments in office.
Candidates with fewer than 10 classified statements are left out. The grey tick is the median of the ranked House candidates (50 or more statements), for scale.
Money
Reported receipts range from $0 to $658.6K. Six of the seven candidates have campaign-finance figures from the FEC.
Totals each campaign reports to the Federal Election Commission for the 2026 cycle: money raised, money spent and cash on hand at the end of the latest filing.
How much has each candidate raised?
Total receipts reported to the FEC, with cash on hand
- Misti Cordell$658.6K$200.2K on hand
- Samuel Wyatt$299.6K$0 on hand
- Stewart Cathey Jr.$245.6K$97.8K on hand
- Dixon Mcmakin$63.4K$0 on hand
- Larry Foy$6,838-$332 on hand
Show the data
| Candidate | Party | Raised | Spent | Cash on hand | Debts | Individuals | PACs | Party committees | Own money | Candidate loans | Through |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Misti Cordell | R | $658.6K | $458.4K | $200.2K | $206.5K | $429.6K | $22.5K | $0 | $0 | $206.5K | — |
| Samuel Wyatt | R | $299.6K | $299.6K | $0 | $0 | $107.1K | $0 | $0 | $0 | $191.1K | — |
| Stewart Cathey Jr. | R | $245.6K | $147.8K | $97.8K | $0 | $238.1K | $7,500 | $0 | $0 | $0 | — |
| Dixon Mcmakin | R | $63.4K | $63.4K | $0 | $0 | $63.4K | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | — |
| Larry Foy | D | $6,838 | $5,720 | -$332 | $0 | $3,939 | $0 | $0 | $624 | $0 | — |
| Carl Smith Jr. | R | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | — |