All articles tagged with #republican primary
Ralph Alvarado, a physician and former Kentucky state senator backed by Donald Trump, won the Republican primary to replace outgoing Rep. Andy Barr in Kentucky’s 6th District; Alvarado had resigned as Tennessee health commissioner to run. The seat, carried by Trump in 2024, is viewed by Democrats as a competitive battleground in the general election.
U.S. Rep. Andy Barr won Kentucky's Republican primary for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Mitch McConnell, aided by a Trump endorsement and outsized fundraising over rival Daniel Cameron; Cameron conceded after Barr led as polls closed, setting Barr up to face the Democrat in November.
Representative Andy Barr won the Republican nomination to succeed retiring Senator Mitch McConnell in Kentucky, riding President Trump's endorsement in a three-way race with Daniel Cameron and Nate Morris; Morris withdrew and endorsed Barr, who framed his campaign around preserving Kentucky's voice in the Senate and uniting a divided Republican base.
Rep. Andy Barr won Kentucky's Republican Senate primary, boosted by President Trump's endorsement and Nate Morris's withdrawal, setting up a general-election bid to succeed retiring Sen. Mitch McConnell; Daniel Cameron finished a distant second.
Georgia Republicans are scrambling to nominate a candidate to challenge Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff in 2026, with debates featuring Rep. Mike Collins, Derek Dooley, and Rep. Buddy Carter; Gov. Brian Kemp is backing Dooley as the field narrows.
Kentucky’s 4th District GOP primary has become a high-stakes loyalty test between President Trump and Rep. Thomas Massie, as Trump-backed challenger Ed Gallrein gains momentum amid a flood of costly ads and mounting pressure from the White House, leaving voters torn between allegiance to Trump and Massie’s libertarian-leaning record.
Pete Ricketts won Nebraska's U.S. Senate Republican primary with about 81.7% of 165,715 votes, defeating Todd Knobel and Debb Axtell Schultz; Cindy Burbank captured the Democratic primary with about 89.2% of 102,122 votes. The AP called both races, and The Cook Political Report still lists the general-election race as Likely Republican.
Ohio Republicans worry that Madison Sheahan, a former ICE deputy director tied to Trump's immigration crackdown, could derail their bid to flip the Toledo-area 9th District; while her record may energize MAGA-primary voters, it could be toxic in the general election against Democrat Marcy Kaptur, as opponents highlight ICE conduct and fundraising gaps in a race seen as a top battleground.
President Trump endorsed Anthony Constantino, CEO of Sticker Mule, to fill Elise Stefanik’s New York-21 seat, a move that clashes with the state GOP’s preferred candidate Assemblyman Robert Smullen and complicates a divisive primary as MAGA-aligned backers rally around Constantino while establishment leaders back Smullen.
Vivek Ramaswamy has all but cleared the GOP field in Ohio’s governor race with a massive fundraising haul (about $40 million) and a relentless statewide campaign, making him the clear favorite in a largely Republican-leaning primary. But November’s general election appears competitive, with Democrat Amy Acton leading some polls and Democrats arguing that his billionaire status and aggressive proposals may be off-putting to blue-collar voters. While Ramaswamy’s wealth, endorsements, and tech-forward, growth-focused message energize supporters, some Republicans worry about an outsider label and the risk that wealth and branding won’t automatically translate into broad, durable support across Ohio’s diverse electorate.
Louisiana’s GOP Senate race has become a tight three-way contest among Julia Letlow (Trump-backed), Bill Cassidy, and John Fleming, with no clear frontrunner five weeks before the May 16 primary and a June runoff likely. Cassidy attacks the NRSC for not backing him after his Trump impeachment vote, while Fleming says Trump-aligned figures pressed him to drop out but he refused. Letlow is rallying behind Trump’s endorsement, but faces a crowded anti-incumbent field; the White House’s stance appears to favor Cassidy’s exit, underscoring significant intra-party turmoil ahead of the vote.
In Mississippi’s 2nd Congressional District, Democratic incumbent Bennie Thompson won the Democratic primary with about 86% of the 65,100 votes, defeating Evan Turnage and Pertis Williams (AP called the winner). In the Republican primary, Ron Eller narrowly defeated Kevin Wilson, 51.1% to 48.9% of 22,884 votes. The Cook Political Report still rates the district Solidly Democratic, giving Thompson a strong path to November.
Texas Rep. Tony Gonzales failed to win 50% in the GOP primary for the 23rd District amid allegations of a staffer relationship, triggering a runoff against conservative YouTuber Brandon Herrera as GOP backlash grows and calls for resignation rise; Gonzales denies the accusations.
Embattled U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales was forced into a runoff against gun-rights activist Brandon Herrera in Texas’ 23rd Congressional District GOP primary after revelations tied to an affair with a former aide who later died by self-immolation; neither candidate cleared 50% in the initial vote, setting up a May 26 runoff—the second straight runoff between the rivals in two cycles. Herrera has leveraged a large online following and fundraising edge, while Gonzales has faced conservative backlash and earlier censure over a 2023 gun-safety vote. The race will decide who advances to the November general election in a district spanning much of the Texas-Mexico border.
In a tight Texas GOP primary for the 2nd District, Rep. Dan Crenshaw lost to hard‑line state Rep. Steve Toth, a result framed as a rebuke of Crenshaw’s occasional breaks with Republicans and his stance on the 2020 election amid strong Trump loyalty in a solidly Republican Houston-area district. Trump did not endorse either candidate, but backers including Ted Cruz and Tucker Carlson helped Toth, highlighting the party’s hard-right drift and the vulnerability of incumbents who cross Trump-era lines.