TROUBLE BREWING?

Trump Humiliated as Election Losing Streak Hits Milestone

The president’s endorsement record was dealt a new blow as the primary season winds down.

Donald Trump’s effort to boost Republican candidates isn’t packing the punch he wants it to, as his losing endorsements hit double digits this week thanks to a series of primaries in his home state.

Ten GOP candidates endorsed by the president have now lost their primary race after the Florida Republican primary season came to a close on Tuesday.

They include Catalina Lauf, whom he endorsed in Florida’s crowded GOP 19th congressional district primary race, and scandal-plagued Rep. Cory Mills, who was running for reelection in the state’s seventh congressional district, but lost his primary by more than 13 points.

In Wyoming, Trump’s pick for governor, Megan Degenfelder, also lost her bid despite the president attempting to put his thumb on the scale in her favor. The state’s school superintendent lost to state Rep. Eric Barlow by more than 15 points.

Degenfelder was one of a handful of candidates for governor who have lost primary races this cycle despite Trump’s endorsement. There has also been an uptick in his preferred House candidates coming up short in recent weeks.

The string of races where Republican voters have bucked the president’s picks raises questions about how voters from his own party are feeling about the U.S. political landscape as Trump himself is facing record-low approval.

L, L, L...

Trump Humiliated by String of Endorsement Flops in Key Races

William Vaillancourt

His preferred gubernatorial candidates have now lost in states including ones that have been strong Trump backers in previous election cycles.

Lt. Governor Burt Jones lost in Georgia. Rep. Randy Feenstra came up short in Iowa. Lt Governor Pam Evette failed to avoid a runoff in South Carolina before losing. And MyPillow founder and election denier Mike Lindell lost the primary in Minnesota before refusing to concede gracefully.

On the House side, while Mills and Lauf both failed to lock in their primaries this week, Trump’s preferred candidates in two other states also recently lost House primaries, including close ally Andy Ogles in Tennessee and Amir Hassan in Michigan, despite appearing recently with Trump on stage in his state.

After Mills lost, Trump was quick to make excuses and endorse his challenger on Wednesday.

“I told Congressman Cory Mills of Florida, a friend of mine, to get out of the Race, but he wouldn’t listen,’ Trump wrote on Truth Social. ”He thought he could win, so who can blame him? We now have a great candidate, Ryan Elijah, running in his place! Ryan stands for EVERYTHING MAGA, and is respected by ALL."

GOING DOWN

Trump Hit By Losing Streak as Another Republican Flops

Sarah Ewall-Wice

While Trump has seen an uptick in voters rejecting his candidates, his endorsements in GOP primaries do continue to be a boost for many candidates looking to become the party nominee.

Some of the most closely watched primaries where he backed challengers looking to oust GOP incumbents accused of not being loyal enough to the president proved to be successful revenge campaigns. Sen. Bill Cassidy, Sen. John Cornyn, and Rep. Thomas Massie all lost their primaries.

But primaries largely see a more engaged electorate than the general election. Trump’s weakening ability to get his candidates across the primary finish line does not bode well for his party come November.

The latest Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Tuesday showed Trump’s approval hitting a new record low with just 33 percent of those surveyed saying they approve of his performance while 64 percent disapprove.

Trump seeing ten candidates he endorsed lose so far is only one shy of the eleven candidates he endorsed who lost their primary bids in 2022 in total, and the 2026 primary season has not completely wrapped up.

Back in 2022, only one of the incumbents Trump endorsed lost his primary, Rep. Madison Cawthorn, who was facing numerous investigations. Six of the primary challengers he backed also came up short, making up the vast majority of his losing endorsements. Four were running for open seats.

In 2024, just four Trump-backed candidates lost their primary bids as the president ran for a second term.

The last time Trump was president and faced a midterm election season in 2018, only two of the candidates he endorsed in the primaries lost, but he went on to face a rough general election season, and Democrats retook the House that year.

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Sarah Ewall-WicePolitical Reporter

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