Julia Letlow
Official portrait, 2021
Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromLouisiana's5th district
Incumbent
Assumed office April 14, 2021
Preceded by	Ralph Abraham[a]
Personal details
Born	Julia Janelle Barnhill (1981-03-16)March 16, 1981 (age 44) Monroe, Louisiana, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Luke Letlow ​ ​ (m. 2013; died 2020)​
Children	2
Education	University of Louisiana, Monroe (BA,MA) University of South Florida (PhD)
Website	House website Campaign website

Julia Janelle Letlow (/ˈlɛtloʊ/LET-loh;néeBarnhill; born March 16, 1981) is an American politician and academic administrator serving as theU.S. representative forLouisiana's 5th congressional district since 2021.^[2][3] Letlow is the firstRepublican woman to represent Louisiana in the House.^[4]

Letlow earned herDoctor of Philosophy in communications from theUniversity of South Florida in 2012. Her doctoral advisor was Jane Jorgenson. Letlow's dissertation was titledGiving Meaning to Grief: the Role of Rituals and Stories in Coping with Sudden Family Loss.^[5] She dedicated it to her brother, Jeremy, who died in an automobile collision.^[5][6]

Letlow was born Julia Janelle Barnhill on March 16, 1981, inMonroe, Louisiana. She was the middle child of Terry and Kathi Arneson Barnhill. Her father is an investment adviser. Her mother is a former flight attendent. She graduated fromOuachita Christian High School.^[7] She earned herBachelor of Arts andMaster of Arts in speech communications from theUniversity of Louisiana at Monroe, followed by aDoctor of Philosophy in communications from theUniversity of South Florida in 2012. Her doctoral advisor was Jane Jorgenson. Letlow's dissertation was titledGiving Meaning to Grief: the Role of Rituals and Stories in Coping with Sudden Family Loss.^[5] She dedicated it to her brother, Jeremy, who died in an automobile collision.^[5][6]

Letlow worked as director of education and patient safety forTulane University School of Medicine.^[8] In 2018, she was named director of external affairs and strategic communications for theUniversity of Louisiana at Monroe (ULM).^[9] In 2020, she was a finalist for the presidency of ULM.^[10][11]

Letlow's husband,Luke Letlow, was elected to theUnited States House of Representatives forLouisiana's 5th congressional district in the2020 elections, but died fromCOVID-19 in December 2020, before taking office.^[12] Julia decided to run in thespecial election for the vacant seat in January 2021.^[13] During her campaign, she secured a number of high-profile endorsements, including one from former PresidentDonald Trump.^[14] By the end of February, Letlow had raised $683,000, the most money raised by any candidate in the race.^[15] On March 20, she received over 64% of the vote in thenonpartisan blanket primary, winning the election outright and avoiding a runoff.^[16] Letlow is the first Republican woman elected to Congress from Louisiana.^[17][18]

Letlow won reelection outright in 2022, winning 67% of the vote against three opponents.^[19]

Letlow won reelection outright in Louisiana’s November 5, 2024, primary with 62.9% of the vote against Michael Vallien Jr. and M. V. “Vinny” Mendoza.^[20]

She was sworn in on April 14, 2021.^[6] On January 3, 2025, Letlow voted forMike Johnson forSpeaker of the House in the 119th Congress.^[21]

• Committee on Appropriations^[22]
  • Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies^[22]
  • Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies^[22]
  • Subcommittee on National Security, Department of State, and Related Programs^[22]
• Committee on Education and the Workforce^[22]

In the 118th Congress, Letlow introduced the Parents Bill of Rights Act (H.R. 5). The House passed the bill on March 24, 2023, by a vote of 213–208.^[23][24]

In the 119th Congress, she sponsored the Farm Rescue Act of 2025 (H.R. 5473) to authorize advance partial Price Loss Coverage payments for the 2025 crop year; the bill was referred to the House Committee on Agriculture on September 18, 2025.^[25]

Letlow also co-led the bipartisan BUILD Act of 2025 (H.R. 2979) to support infrastructure investment for small law-enforcement and fire departments,^[26][27] and introduced H.R. 2822 to extend the National Flood Insurance Program through December 31, 2026.^[28]

• Congressional Coalition on Adoption^[29]
• Climate Solutions Caucus^[30]
• Republican Governance Group^[31]

Letlow released a statement criticizing theBiden administration for "immigration detainees being released" in Louisiana, writing, "I join my fellow members of the Louisiana delegation in demanding a thorough and complete explanation of this situation and urge the Administration to stop these releases immediately".^[32]

In July 2021, Letlow toldKNOE-TV that there was "Nothing like a pandemic to bring to light how vital rural broadband is to our district", and said that rural broadband can provide better access to quality healthcare and education. Of the infrastructure plan proposed byJoe Biden, Letlow said, "You know, it's the political football...I really want to make sure that that infrastructure bill addresses true infrastructure needs. Roads, bridges, ports, rural broadband. Cut the other part out."^[33]

Letlow said she would have joined the majority of Republican representatives inobjecting to the results of the 2020 presidential election in Congress, had she been in office at the time.^[15]

Letlow authored a Parent's Bill of Rights that passed the U.S. House in March 2023. The measure was introduced as H.R. 5 in the 118th Congress and passed the House on March 24, 2023.^[34][35]The bill would give parents more oversight over what is taught in public schools. It would require school districts to make curricula public, provide parents with information on available library materials, allow parents to address school boards, require public disclosure of school budgets, and require parental consent prior to any physical or mental medical exams taking place at school.^[36][37]

Letlow metLuke Letlow in high school and years later, they married in 2013.^[38][8] They had two children together before his death in 2020.^[39] Letlow addressedvaccine hesitancy among Republicans and encouraged them to get theCOVID-19 vaccine, invoking her husband's death from the virus.^[40]

Letlow is aPresbyterian.^[41]

Wikimedia Commons has media related toJulia Letlow.

• Representative Julia Letlow official U.S. House website
• Representative Julia Letlow Campaign website

• Biography at theBiographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Financial information (federal office) at theFederal Election Commission
• Legislation sponsored at theLibrary of Congress
• Profile atVote Smart
• Julia Letlow atIMDb 
• Appearances onC-SPAN

• 1981 births
• 21st-century American women politicians
• 21st-century United States representatives
• American academic administrators
• American women academic administrators
• Female United States representatives
• Living people
• Louisiana Republicans
• Presbyterians from Louisiana
• Politicians from Monroe, Louisiana
• Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Louisiana
• Spouses of American politicians
• University of Louisiana at Monroe alumni
• University of South Florida alumni
• Women in Louisiana politics

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Use mdy dates from April 2021
• Commons category link is on Wikidata
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