By Blake Paterson • November 4, 2026

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Democrats failed to topple GOP Congresswoman Julia Letlow in Louisiana’s closely contested Senate race on Tuesday.

But Jamie Davis’ better-than-expected performance has energized Louisiana Democrats as they prepare to take on Gov. Jeff Landry in next year’s gubernatorial contest.

On Wednesday, four Democrats told Perdido Street they’re exploring a run for governor. They include:

In a speech to supporters Tuesday night, Davis also hinted at a potential run. “We have to continue to fight,” he said. “And I will say this right now: Jeff Landry, you’re on notice, buddy.”

According to Louisiana Democratic Party Chair Randal Gaines, another potential candidate is Mary Leach Warner, who served as chair of the LSU Board of Supervisors under Gov. John Bel Edwards and is the daughter of former U.S. Congressman Buddy Leach. Warner didn’t respond to a request for comment.

The race is especially wide open considering Edwards, long-rumored as a potential candidate, is barred from seeking a third term after voters approved a constitutional amendment Tuesday putting term limits on governors.

Melissa Flournoy, a Democratic activist and former state legislator, told me she thinks Davis should “clear the field” and announce a run for governor ASAP.

“I think he’s got incredibly good instincts politically and would hire really competent folks,” Flournoy said, adding that she believes Davis would govern like former Gov. Mike Foster, who filled his administration with “really smart people and let them do their jobs.”

“I don’t want anybody else riding Jamie Davis’ coattails except Jamie Davis,” Flournoy said.

Louisiana’s Senate contest was initially viewed as a sure-bet for Republicans. Letlow rode to victory in the primary with the backing of President Donald Trump, who won the state by 22 points in 2024 and prodded Letlow into running against Sen. Bill Cassidy, whom he viewed as disloyal.

Davis, meanwhile, was a virtual unknown when he qualified in February. A one-time police juror from Tensas Parish, he ran unsuccessfully for a state House seat in 2023 and currently serves on the state party’s executive committee.

But Davis capitalized on voters’ discontent with Trump’s tariffs and war in Iran, and he hammered Letlow for trading stocks in Meta after signing an NDA with the tech giant. (Letlow dodged a question about those stock trades in a gaggle with reporters after Tuesday’s victory.)

Davis also outworked Letlow in the ground game, building a grassroots “movement,” as he described it, of nearly 5,000 active volunteers.

On Tuesday, Davis came within two percentage points of defeating Letlow, a margin of 26,000 votes out of nearly 1.47 million cast. (Sen. John Kennedy won in 2022 by 44 points and Cassidy won in 2020 by 40 points.)

“The team that we assembled, I will go to war with them again tomorrow,” Davis said Tuesday night.

But Davis said he needs permission from his wife, Brenda, to embark on another campaign.

“The journey that we went on was so long and it was so hard,” Davis said. “It was grueling for a husband, much less a wife, that basically is really a person that wants to be in her room reading a book, snuggling with her teddy bear, and not being bothered with the public.” (Davis chuckled after a supporter in the audience asked if he was “that teddy bear.”)

“If she would say yes, I'd start another fight tomorrow,” Davis added. “I just need y’all’s help to ask for the permission because that’s the person that holds the note.”

After his speech Tuesday night, I asked Davis whether he’s considering a run against Landry.

“I’m not including or excluding anything,” he said. “What I am saying is that Jamie Davis is not going anywhere.”

“The machine that we’ve built will stay and be involved in every single race, whether I’m a candidate or just supporting another candidate,” he said.

Louisiana’s gubernatorial contest will be a jungle primary, meaning that all candidates will appear on the ballot in the initial vote and the top two contenders will got to a runoff.

Lewis said he hopes the party will coalesce behind a single candidate to avoid splintering the vote. “I think the party needs one candidate, with one voice and one message to end the Landry administration,” he said.

Davis managed to come within striking distance of Letlow despite having virtually zero support from the national party.

Gaines said he asked the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee to invest in Davis’ campaign in June. He provided data from Louisiana’s May 16 primary, which saw massive turnout among Black voters, and argued that Louisiana was on the verge of a Democratic “breakthrough.” But Senate Democrats weren’t convinced.

In October, Congressman Troy Carter asked the DSCC to reconsider its stance and spend $2 million on the race. They didn’t budge.

“The DSCC gave zero attention, care or effort to Louisiana,” Dadrius Lanus, executive director of the state party, told me. “We sent them information. They refused to respond to us.”

Former Congressman Cedric Richmond told me he thinks Davis would have won had the DSCC invested $2 million.

“Congressman Carter and I had a conversation today and we both expressed a real concern and frustration that all of the committees need to be one, better coordinated, but two, encouraged to take a fresh look at their decision making, especially as it comes to the South,” Richmond said.

“Jamie Davis showed us what’s possible for a Black Democrat in Louisiana,” Richmond said. “This state, with the right candidate and the right funding, could elect an African American statewide.”

Carter, who is vying to become the next chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, told me he believes that “all roads to the White House lead through the South.”

“I have been preaching to the national party on the necessity of investing in the South,” he said. “You can’t reap that for which you don’t sow.”

Every Sunday, Perdido Street publishes a calendar of meetings and events across metro New Orleans for the coming week. Agendas are linked and will be added as they’re posted. Is there an event you want included? Email me at [email protected].

Here’s what’s happening Thursday: