Congressman Clay Higgins (R) represents Louisiana's 3rd Congressional District
Congressman Clay Higgins has announced that he will not run for Senator Bill Cassidy’s seat in 2026, despite speculation and encouragement from supporters.
Citing polls showing Republican interest in his candidacy, Higgins said he carefully considered a Senate bid but decided to remain in the House.
“(A)coording to two Trafalgar Group statewide polls, the vast majority of Louisiana Republicans want me to be their Senator,” Higgins wrote in an open letter posted onto his Facebook page. “For the past year, because so many Patriots privately encouraged me to seek the Senate seat durely to be strongly contested in 2026, I have calmly studied a potential transition of my Congressional service from the People’s House to the esteemed Senate. Now, it is my cosidered determination that, currently engagement in the House being incredibly significant, it may be ultimately more beneficial to the Republic that I remain in service to the MAGA America First agenda as a senior Republican in the House of Representatives.”
“Ever since he burst on the scene, Congressman Higgins has been a strong and identifiable force,” says Pearson Cross, the director of the School of Behavioral and Social Sciences at ULM. “So as he got elected again and again to his representative seat, surely people started talking about him for the Senate.”
Cross says Higgins is a viable candidate for the Senate.
“It’s possible, however, that as he pointed out in his letter, he enjoys where he is in the House,” says Cross. “He’s been there long enough now to have gained some positions of authority. And he feels like he would be better served in the House than the Senate.”
Higgins’ decision paves the way for Louisiana Treasurer John Fleming to challenge Cassidy from the right.
Higgins believes Fleming won’t be the only one.
“There are several American Patriots of distinguished accomplishment who will vie for the United States Senate seat currently held by Dr. Bill Cassidy, whose service to our Nation within the Senate seems to have soon reached conclusion,” Higgins continues in his open letter. “I have no lack of love for my fellow man, and Senator Cassidy is no exception to that fact. I respect the Senator, I thank him for his service, and I wish him well.”
Cassidy, a moderate Republican, is indeed seeking re-election, but he faces uncertainty in his bid.
But Cross says Cassidy’s vote to approve Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Health and Human Services Secretary could give Cassidy an advantage appealing to more MAGA Conservatives.
“Certainly, Cassidy would have been more vulnerable in a Republican primary had he voted against RFK’s nomination,” says Cross.
Cross says another hurdle for Higgins is fundraising and to what extent he’d be able to fundraise at the levels needed for a U.S. Senate seat.
“Congressman Higgins has never been a prolific fundraiser,” Cross notes. “But running for the Senate would require spending a lot of time raising money, and he may have thought that price was too high.”
Cassidy announced in January he had six-point-five million dollars in cash on hand for his re-election bid.
Sean Richardson contributed to this report.
Comments