Source: Africa Publicity
Ed Gallerin, a President Donald Trump-backed candidate has defeated Republican congressman, Thomas Massie in the GOP Primary in Kentucky.
The Kentucky primary was held on Tuesday, May 19, 2026.
With an estimated 72 percent of the vote counted, Ed Gallrein reportedly led with 54.4 percent to Massie’s 45.6 percent.
Ed Gallrein, an ex-Navy Seal and Trump’s ally, will now compete in the midterm election to be held in November this year.
The Kentucky contest is deemed the most expensive primary in the history of the House of Representatives.
It had been widely seen as a key test of President Trump’s decade-long grip on the Republican Party.
Trump had repeatedly called for voters to back Gallrein over the incumbent Massie, who he described as a “major sleazebag” and “the worst Republican congressman in history”.
Massie, who has been in office since 2012, publicly broke with Trump by voting against his “big, beautiful” tax and spending bill last year over concerns about the national debt. He has also voted to curtail Trump’s attacks on suspected drug boats in the Caribbean and his ongoing war in Iran.
