In a last-minute reversal, Rep. Rodney Alexander of Louisiana, elected in 2002 as a Democrat, filed to run for re-election as a Republican late Friday.

Alexander, who had resisted GOP overtures to switch parties, initially filed as a Democrat on Wednesday. He then refiled as a Republican on Friday — the last day for candidates to qualify in the state.

“I am excited to welcome Rodney Alexander to the Republican Party and endorse him for Congress in the Fifth District,” Rep. David Vitter (R-La.) said in a statement.

While Alexander’s district favors Republicans, the GOP failed to secure a top-tier candidate, leaving Alexander a shoo-in as a Democrat.

Kori Bernards of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee said Alexander betrayed voters and the state’s two Democratic Senators, John Breaux and Mary Landrieu. “We have no use for turncoats like Rodney Alexander in the new Democratic majority,” she said.