Republican Boustany wins Louisiana U.S. House runoff

(Reuters) - U.S. Representative Charles Boustany defeated fellow Republican Representative Jeff Landry on Saturday in a runoff for a U.S. congressional seat in Louisiana.

Boustany won a fifth term, capturing 61 percent of the vote in the southwest Louisiana district, with 100 percent of precincts reporting, according to the Louisiana Secretary of State's office. Landry lost his seat after only one term.

"Thank you! We couldn't have done it without you!" read a note on Boustany's campaign website late on Saturday.

The two lawmakers were forced to vie for a single House of Representatives seat after Louisiana's seven districts were reduced to six in the last redistricting cycle.

In a field of five candidates in the November general election, neither Landry nor Boustany mustered more than 50 percent of the vote, a requirement to win.

Boustany, of Lafayette, captured 45 percent of the vote and Landry, from New Iberia, drew 30 percent.

In Louisiana's open primary system, all candidates for an office appear on the same ballot, regardless of party affiliation.

Boustany, considered a Republican moderate, raised $3 million for the general election campaign, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

That was almost 50 percent more than Landry, who had backing from the conservative Tea Party movement for his support for smaller government.

(Editing by Tim Gaynor and Xavier Briand)