ADVOCATE THE
T H E A D V O C AT E.C O M
BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA
|
S u n d ay, J u n e 28, 2026
H
$2.50X
E LEC T ION 2026
EBR voters pass tax proposals by wide margin
LETLOW ADVANCES Backed by Trump, she edges Fleming to win GOP Senate primary She will face Democrat Jamie Davis in the Nov. 3 election
All renewals approved by more than 60%
BY CLAIRE GRUNEWALD Staff writer
Seven months after voters rejected a plan to change how property taxes for some East Baton Rouge Parish agencies are spent, property tax renewals for three parish agencies were approved by wide margins on Saturday. For the East Baton Rouge Parish Library, 64% of voters approved its property tax continuation of 9.5 mills. For BREC, 63% of voters approved its property tax renewal of 3.96 mills. For Council on Aging, 68% of voters approved its property tax renewal of 2 mills, with all 329 precincts reporting. More than 74,000 parish residents cast votes for each of the three tax renewals on the ballot. For the library system, the property tax will collect around $59.6 million annually for the next 10 years to fund all library operations. The previous tax millage, which expired at the end of 2025, was set at a higher rate of 9.89 mills. The balloting comes after voters last fall rejected Proposition 1, which would have funded the system through an 11.1mill annual tax, with 2.8 of those mills going to the parish’s general fund as a part of Mayor-President Sid Edwards’ Thrive plan to rededicate taxes to fix a hole in the general fund. The issue on this month’s ballot garnered strong support from librarygoers, but it also faced opposition that had significant funding. With the millage approved, library leadership said the system can restore complete funding for books and materials and move forward with branch improvement projects. “I wish to express our gratitude to our community. We greatly appreciate your approval of our 10-year dedicated millage, as you have every 10 years since 1986,” library director Katrina Stokes said in a statement. “Thank you for providing us with the means to continue
ä See TAX, page 6A
STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON
U.S. Rep. Julia Letlow addresses the crowd at a watch party in Baton Rouge on Saturday after winning the Republican primary runoff for U.S. Senate. BY TYLER BRIDGES Staff writer
U.S. Rep. Julia Letlow fended off a tough campaign from state Treasurer John Fleming to win the Republican runoff for the U.S. Senate on Saturday and become the prohibitive favorite to be Louisiana’s next senator. Letlow captured the Republican Party nomination Saturday with the strong support of President Donald Trump — his endorsement of her in January to defeat Sen. Bill Cassidy prompted her entry into the race — and Gov. Jeff Landry, who raised millions of dollars for a super PAC that relentlessly attacked Fleming. With the victory over Fleming, Letlow advances to the Nov. 3 general election ballot, where she will face Jamie Davis, a farmer from northeast Louisiana who overwhelmingly won the Democratic Party runoff Saturday over business
Fleming
Davis
owner Gary Crockett. The victor in that race will replace Cassidy, a Republican from Baton Rouge who ran afoul of Trump and was eliminated in the May 16 Republican primary while seeking a third term. Letlow will be heavily favored in November because no Democrat has been elected to the Senate since 2008, and Republicans hold all statewide offices in Louisiana. D a v i s , h o w e v e r, vowed to run a competi-
tive campaign. Letlow took an early lead Saturday night when the first returns were posted — from early voters — and never relin-
INSIDE ä Stephanie Hilferty wins Republican PSC primary. PAGE 6A ä Joseph Cao poised to keep BESE seat. PAGE 6A quished her advantage. The Associated Press called the race at 8:44 p.m., 44 minutes after the polls closed. The AP called Davis’ victory at 8:09 p.m. Davis won 80%-20%. Letlow spoke to a jubilant crowd at Duplantis Design Group in Baton Rouge at 9:15 p.m., surrounded by her parents, her two children, her fiance Kevin Ainsworth and campaign aides. She thanked Trump, calling him “the greatest president this country has ever
ä See LETLOW, page 6A
Lawmakers question if La. gives too much to college football
details of how state universities Franklinton, said of college footBill that was rejected would have funded early childhood education spend funds generated by athlet- ball. “You can’t touch it. You can’t
BY MEGHAN FRIEDMANN
ed to raise concerns that the state is too often putting football ahead of other priorities. The debate comes after a legislaAs Louisiana pours millions into making LSU a football juggernaut, tive session during which the Louisome state lawmakers have start- siana House killed a bill that would
Staff writer
WEATHER HIGH 94 LOW 75 PAGE 8B
have given more money to early childhood education programs; instead, college sports programs will get that money. A second bill exacerbated tensions by shielding from the public
ics programs, including how they lessen what we put into it.” Mizell sponsored Senate Bill divide the money among different 135, which would have changed sports and top athletes. “I don’t know if I’d call it a sacred how sports gambling tax revenue cow. But it pretty much is a sacred ä See FOOTBALL, page 7A cow,” state Sen. Beth Mizell, R-
Business ......................1E Deaths .........................4B Opinion ........................6B Classified ..................... 3F Living............................1D Nation-World................2A Commentary ................7B Metro ...........................1B Sports ..........................1C
SEEK SHADE, COVER UP, AND WEAR SUNSCREENN! Protect yourself & your family this summer with h helpful tips from The Baton Rouge Clinic. Scan the QR Code below to learn more!
101ST yEAR, NO. 363