East Baton Rouge Parish District Attorney Hillar Moore was reelected for a fourth term Tuesday as he defeated attorney Ryan Thompson, his first challenger since taking office.
Thompson conceded around 10:30 p.m., after the majority of precincts had reported their results.
Moore received 58% of the vote compared with 42% for Thompson with all precincts reporting, according to Secretary of State unofficial returns.
Thompson announced his campaign for district attorney over a year ago, becoming the first candidate to challenge Moore since he won the post in 2008.
Moore’s watch party, hosted at the Renaissance Hotel, had high energy Tuesday night as the majority of East Baton Rouge Parish precincts reported their results just before 10 p.m.
Moore took the stage minutes later to claim his win, even with incomplete voting returns.
“For 18 years you have trusted me with that responsibility; tonight, you have renewed that trust. I do not take that trust lightly,” Moore said. “Tonight’s not just a victory for one candidate; it’s a victory for our community, for the cause of justice, and for the belief that public service done with integrity still matters today.”
Moore, 71, said he ran this race on his own record as district attorney.
He said being challenged gave him the “opportunity and responsibility to go back before the voters and talk about what we have accomplished, answer questions about where we need to improve and make the case for where I want to take the office over the next six years.”
Moore amassed a significant war chest, receiving over $1.2 million in donations since the start of 2025. That rivaled the amount former Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome raised in her 2024 reelection attempt.
Thompson, 45, a defense attorney and civil rights litigator, said he ran for a “safer and more just Baton Rouge,” by making the office work more effectively against violent crime.
He took stage at the Executive Center on South Foster Drive around 10:30 p.m., but his supporters had been leaving for half an hour before then.
“The work doesn’t end here,” Thompson said. “I still believe in public safety, but that public safety must be built on collaboration, communication and meaningful engagement in our community.”
Thompson added that he was proud of the grassroots campaign he ran against Moore, saying on Election Day that his campaign had knocked on more than 50,000 doors in total.
Thompson’s funds paled in comparison to Moore’s, reporting around $44,000 in donations, according to recent campaign finance reports.
Reporters Liv Tees and Blake Leschber contributed to this story.