Louisiana Congressman-Elect Luke Letlow has died from COVID-19 at Ochsner LSU Health in Shreveport. Letlow has spent the last six days in the LSU Health ICU after being transferred from St. Francis Medical on December 23. He initially tested positive on Dec. 18 and was hospitalized the next day.
Letlow’s family “appreciates the numerous prayers and support over the past days but asks for privacy during this difficult and unexpected time,” a spokesman says. Letlow recently celebrated his 41st birthday.
Letlow was set to succeed Congressman Ralph Abraham (R-Alto) in serving the 5th Congressional District after winning 62 percent of the vote in a Dec. 5 runoff against Republican state Rep. Lance Harris. Letlow had formerly served as Abraham’s chief of staff.
According to the Louisiana Department of Health, there have been 3,946 new COVID-19 cases reported to the state since Dec. 28th, and 61 deaths. So far, 7,397 Louisianans have died from COVID-19.
