La. Senate contender books seven-figure ad buy

by Ben Kamisar - 09/07/16 2:06 PM ET

Republican Rep. John Fleming is out with a television ad buy of at least $1 million as the race for Louisiana’s open Senate seat heats up.

The biographical spot, which will air across the state on both network and cable channels, seeks to introduce voters to the congressman with less than two months before the primary election.

{mosads}It touts the Freedom Caucus member as a “tough, tested and trusted conservative” who “became his family’s breadwinner” at a young age. The spot also angles to portray Fleming as the most conservative congressman in Louisiana, citing rankings from the conservative Heritage Action for America.

While much of the intrigue in the race for the Senate majority is focused on tight general election contests coming up, the Louisiana race is on a slower timeline.

Under Louisiana’s “jungle primary” system, all the candidates will compete in the Nov. 8 election, but unless one candidate wins the majority of the vote, the top two vote-getters, regardless of party, will advance to a runoff election on Dec. 10.

Among the slew of contenders for the seat, Fleming, fellow Republican Rep. Charles Boustany and state treasurer John Kennedy are seen as the favorites on the GOP side.

They are hoping to fill the seat of retiring Republican Sen. David Vitter, which is expected to stay safely in Republican hands.

In 2014, then-Rep. Bill Cassidy (R) and the incumbent Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu went head to head in a runoff Senate election. While Landrieu led the primary by a slim margin, enough Republicans coalesced around Cassidy to lead him to a 12-point victory.

Tags Charles Boustany David Vitter John Fleming Mary Landrieu