By Blake Paterson • November 9, 2026

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Gov. Jeff Landry will be in New Orleans this week raising money for his 2027 re-election, as he faces what could be a tougher-than-expected bid for a second term after Democrats’ strong showing in last week’s election.

The invite to Thursday’s reception at The Windsor Court features the names of more than 70 supporters from metro New Orleans, including well-known GOP mega-donors and prominent local business leaders.

The donations will go toward the Louisiana First Fund 2026, a joint fundraising venture between Landry, the Republican Party of Louisiana, Protect Louisiana Values, Inc. and Cajun PAC II, Inc.

Landry enters next year’s contest with a major cash advantage. The governor’s campaign bank account had $10.7 million as of Dec. 31, 2025, according to the latest campaign finance reports.

Cajun PAC II, Inc., run by the governor’s brother, Benjamin Landry, had $754,000 as of Sept. 30, and the Republican Party of Louisiana had $308,000. (Louisiana Democrats, meanwhile, had around $172,000.)

Protect Louisiana Values, Inc., run by attorney Bob Ellis, had only $8,000 on hand, after spending nearly $2 million backing a pair of constitutional amendments in the May election. It got all of its money from a political nonprofit of the same name that doesn’t have to disclose its donors.

Several Democrats are eyeing a potential run against Landry, after Jamie Davis came within two points of an upset victory over GOP Rep. Julia Letlow in last week’s Senate contest.

The Democratic Governors Association is expected to run a poll in the coming weeks to determine which prospective candidate has the best shot against Landry, sources told Perdido Street.

Former Gov. John Bel Edwards told The Times-Picayune he doesn’t think a constitutional amendment that voters approved Tuesday imposing a limit of two lifetime terms for governors would apply to him retroactively. Either way, Edwards said he’s ruled out running next year.

In last week’s Senate election, Davis carried eight state House seats currently held by Republicans, buoying Democrats’ hopes of competing down-ballot in next year’s election.

They’ll face their first test in the special election for House District 94, which GOP state Rep. Stephanie Hilferty will vacate after winning a seat on the Public Service Commission on Tuesday.

The district — which Davis narrowly won with 51.9% of the vote — includes Lakeview, Lake Vista, Bucktown and parts of Metairie.

Several Republicans have already announced their candidacies, including:

No Democrats have announced plans to run, but District A Councilwoman Aimee McCarron, who represents District 94 on the Democratic State Central Committee, said they’re “actively recruiting a candidate and hope to share some news within the next week or so.”

“It’s a prime target of the party,” she said.

A leadership vote tomorrow among House Republicans will help determine New Orleans’ influence in the next Congress.

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, a Jefferson Republican, is facing off against Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan to be the next minority leader.

Scalise regularly talks on the phone with Mayor Helena Moreno and helped her secure FEMA funding extensions from President Donald Trump’s administration earlier this year for work on the Municipal Auditorium.

U.S. Rep. Troy Carter, another key ally of Moreno in Washington, D.C., is running to lead the Congressional Black Caucus. That vote is scheduled for December.