Louisiana Governor: Jeff Landry First Term — No 2026 Race
Louisiana held governor races Oct 2023 · Jeff Landry won jungle primary outright (52%) · LA R+20 · Next election: 2027
Louisiana Governor — Key Facts
2023 Louisiana Governor Election — Result
Louisiana Governor: Landry’s First Term & Louisiana’s Political Landscape
Conservative Hardliner After Edwards’ Moderation
Jeff Landry succeeded John Bel Edwards, a conservative Democrat who had governed Louisiana from 2016 to 2024 as one of the last Southern Democratic governors. Landry’s first term has involved a sharp rightward turn: aggressive anti-crime legislation targeting New Orleans, mandatory Ten Commandments displays in public schools (challenged in courts), strict abortion enforcement under Louisiana’s near-total ban, anti-DEI policies at state universities, and strong support for the oil, gas, and petrochemical industries that anchor the Louisiana economy. Landry has been a vocal Trump\'s approval and positioned Louisiana as a leader in conservative policy implementation.
Energy Economy vs. Disappearing Coastline
Louisiana faces a dual economic identity: the state’s largest industry is oil and gas production and refining, concentrated along the Gulf Coast and Mississippi River corridor. Yet Louisiana is also losing more land to coastal erosion than almost any place on earth — an estimated football field of land every 100 minutes at peak erosion rates, driven by subsidence, reduced sediment from the Mississippi, and rising sea levels. The coastal communities most at risk are also the communities most economically dependent on offshore oil production. Landry strongly supports fossil fuel development while managing flood insurance, coastal restoration, and infrastructure resilience issues that require massive federal investment.
What Louisiana Watches in the Midterms
Without a governor race, Louisiana’s 2026 federal ballot features its six US House seats — a delegation that became majority-Republican after the 2022 court-ordered redistricting created a second majority-Black district, which Democrats won. Louisiana Senate seats are not up until 2028 (Bill Cassidy) and 2026 for John Kennedy. Kennedy’s potential Senate majority math will be the top Louisiana contest in 2026. Governor Landry will be active as state Republican Party leader supporting Kennedy and House incumbents. The New Orleans mayoral dynamic — a heavily Democratic city in a deeply Republican state — continues to shape Louisiana’s political identity in ways that complicate simple red-state narratives.
