There is little doubt about which party will finally have the two seats: the 2nd District is predominantly Democratic and the 5th District is strongly Republican.
But it is less clear whether one of them will choose a winner on Saturday, or whether – in the primary system of all Louisiana parties, where the top two advance to a one-on-one confrontation if no candidate reaches 50% of the vote – a or both races will go to the second round in April.
2nd district
In the 2nd District, Carter and Peterson are the best-known candidates in the 15-person camp.
Peterson, a former Democratic state president, ran as a progressive by embracing political positions like the New Green Deal and Medicare-for-all. She stressed that Louisiana never elected a black woman to Congress.
She also has deep ties to leading Democratic figures, including the support of an influential group of veteran black Democratic agents: Donna Brazile, Minyon Moore, Leah Daughtry and Yolanda Caraway.
Carter has been most comfortable embracing the establishment’s flag, presenting himself as an effective legislator and publicizing his endorsement from Richmond, Rep. Jim Clyburn of South Carolina, teachers’ unions in Louisiana and the Greater New Orleans AFL-CIO.
“For me, it has never been about issues that make headlines. It is about the issues that make the biggest difference in people’s lives,” he said in an ad.
Among the other 13 candidates is activist Gary Chambers Jr., who also gained followers in part because of his criticisms in June of a Louisiana school board member who advocated naming a school Robert E. Lee – and who era seemed to be online shopping during a hearing on the subject.
“You sit with your arrogance here and shop while the pain and hurt of the people in this community are on display, because you don’t give a damn and must resign,” Chambers told the school board member at the hearing.
5th district
In the 5th District, national Republicans worked hard to send the signal that Letlow is their preference.
Former deputy Ralph Abraham – whose retirement opened the door for the victory of his former chief of staff, Luke Letlow, in December – chose not to run for office again. State Representative Lance Harris, runner-up to Letlow last year, was also left out.
And Julia Letlow’s entry into the race effectively kept other big Republican names out.
House minority leader Kevin McCarthy and the House’s second Republican, Louisiana deputy Steve Scalise, supported Letlow. So did former President Donald Trump, who called her “a wonderful and talented person”. Former Vice President Mike Pence and the state GOP also supported Letlow.
Earlier this month, she told ABC that Luke had always encouraged her to run for public office if the opportunity arose. She said spending so much time in the campaign with her late husband prepared her for the race.
“Listening to people in each parish and listening to their dreams for the future and their ideas on how to make this region better,” said Letlow. “They stole my heart while I was campaigning with Luke and then I feel equipped and ready to take that torch forward.”
The question in Letlow’s race is whether she will get less than 50% of the vote. Sandra “Candy” Christophe is the only Democrat in the 12-person camp and may be in a position to benefit if other Republicans divert votes from Letlow. Democrats in Louisiana’s 5th district garnered 30 to 35 percent support in recent congressional elections in that country, and comparing those numbers to a divided Republican camp could position Christophe for a runoff.
If Letlow wins, she will increase the record number of Republican women in the House to 31.
CNN’s Jasmine Wright, Annie Grayer and Dan Merica contributed to this report.