Retiring Congressman Ralph Abraham’s former Chief of Staff Luke Letlow is the first candidate in the 5th Congressional District race to hit the TV airwaves with ads.
Letlow is reporting a strong 500,000 dollars raised so far in the race. ULM Poli Sci Professor Joshua Stockley says its certainly early for a campaign to start TV ads, but it is a sign of strength.
“Given that he has a substantial amount of money I think it is a good risk,” says Stockely.
Nine candidates are contending for the vacant seat in the ruby-red district that encompasses large swaths of the northeast and central portions of the state.
Letlows two major Republican opponents are state lawmaker Lance Harris and Police Juror Scotty Robinson. Stockley says Letlow is flexing his frontrunner status.
“I do not think that either Harris or Scotty Robinson can afford to counter Luke Letlow’s television advertisements with television advertisements of their own,” says Stockley.
The three are likely contending to be the strong favorite in a run-off race with a Democratic candidate.
Stockley says there is some risk in running ads so early in the season considering everyone is distracted by hurricane season, the pandemic, and the Presidential Election.
“There is just too much right now for most citizens to focus on. I really don’t think we are going to see substantial attention turned to this race until sometime in October,” says Stockley.
The race is on the November 3rd Presidential ballot, and a likely run-off is set for December 5th.
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