BATON ROUGE - One of two candidates who filed to become the next Commissioner of Insurance in Louisiana has withdrawn from the race, allowing Republican Tim Temple to assume the position unopposed.

Temple, of Baton Rouge, was considered by many analysts to be the heavy favorite to win election in October.

The campaign ended shortly after it began, with Democrat Rich Weaver, of Ascension Parish, withdrawing.

Temple has cited his 20 years in insurance industry work among his qualifications for the post. He will succeed outgoing commissioner Jim Donelon, who Temple challenged in the 2019 election.

Donelon won that race with 54 percent of the vote.

Temple released the following statement Wednesday afternoon: 

"As of today, I am honored and humbled to announce that I am officially the Louisiana Insurance Commissioner-Elect. My family and I have been overwhelmed by the amount of support and encouragement we have received from voters across Louisiana throughout this campaign. I will continue to travel our state, visit with our people and share my vision for this office. I’m excited and looking forward to working with Commissioner Donelon on the transition process. We have an enormous amount of work to do for the people of this state and I’m ready to get going. Together, we will tackle Louisiana's insurance crisis head-on. Better days are ahead."

The non-contest becomes the second race for statewide office to end prior to the election. Agriculture Commissioner Mike Strain, also a Republican, was unopposed in his bid for a new term.