So, what is next for John Fleming following his loss to Julia Letlow in the U.S. Senate Republican Primary runoff? LSU Shreveport Political Science Professor Jeffrey Sadow says the 74-year-old Fleming will continue working as State Treasurer and will likely seek re-election next year.
“He shouldn’t have any problems getting re-elected. This was, if anything, a boost to his stature,” Sadow noted.
There were reports the Senate Republican Primary runoff could be a nail biter, but Letlow won by 14 percentage points. Fleming’s campaign strategist, Roy Fletcher, told Talk Louisiana on WRKF, the Letlow campaign spent a lot on advertising in the days leading up to the run-off election.
“I think we spent about a million dollars in the runoff, and they probably spent $12 million. All of the groups together, had so much mail that were coming from groups that I had never heard of,” Fletcher said.
Despite the defeat, Fletcher says Fleming ran a good campaign, and just missed hitting a home run.
“I guess we hit a double in this. We got into the runoff, which surprised the hell out of a lot of people,” Fletcher noted.