Trump-Endorsed Ed Gallrein Defeats Thomas Massie in Kentucky GOP House Primary

Ed Gallrein, a former Navy SEAL and farmer backed by President Trump, defeated Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) in Kentucky's Republican primary on Tuesday.

Key Details: With 99% of the vote in, Gallrein had won about 55% of the 105,361 votes counted, according to NBC News (Lean Left bias). The race was the most expensive House primary in history, seeing roughly $35 million in spending. Including campaign and PAC spending, about $19 million was spent in support of Gallrein, and about $15.9 million for Massie. Gallrein will go on to face Democrat Melissa Strange in the general election, who handily defeated Jesse Brewer with over 72% of the vote.

Trump Feud: Ahead of the vote, Trump described Massie as "disloyal," a "bum," and "worse" than Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), who also lost his primary vote on Saturday after Trump endorsed his challenger. On Monday, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth travelled to Kentucky to campaign for Gallrein.

Israel Lobby: Massie, who has been in office since 2012, told Tucker Carlson (Right bias) a few weeks ago that "at least" 95 percent of Gallrein's funding had come from "the Israeli lobby." Jewish Insider (Center), which described Massie as "antisemitic," highlighted that "pro-Israel groups" were happy to see Massie defeated. On Thursday, Massie introduced a bill that would amend the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) and require those who work for AIPAC to register as foreign agents.

How The Media Covered It: Outlets across the spectrum emphasized the result as a win for President Trump that demonstrates his hold on the Republican Party. ZeroHedge (Lean Right) prominently described Gallrein as "a relative newcomer to politics" who "ran a low-key campaign by refusing to debate Massie and generally avoiding the press." Fox News (Right) highlighted Trump's disdain for Massie and described the loss as a "major blow." Noah Rothman (Lean Right) of National Review (Right) celebrated Massie's defeat in an opinion. Axios (Lean Left) described Trump's campaign against Massie as "unprecedented."

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