Ed Gallrein, a retired Navy SEAL and farmer, defeated seven-term incumbent Thomas Massie in the Republican primary for Kentucky’s fourth congressional district. Trump personally recruited and endorsed Gallrein. The president’s victory is seen as a test of whether dissent still has a place within today’s Republican Party.
Massie joins a list of Republicans who lost their seats or left office early due to their opposition to Trump, including Liz Cheney, Adam Kinzinger, Jeff Flake, and Mitt Romney. In his concession speech, Massie mocked Trump’s ballroom, which the president had styled as the “Roman Empire.”
On the same evening, primaries were held in five other states: Pennsylvania, Georgia, Alabama, Oregon, and Idaho. Trump also backed controversial Texas Attorney Ken Paxton in his Senate primary against John Cornyn, a move that caused internal party friction.
In Kentucky, the party also nominated Andy Barr for the Senate seat that Mitch McConnell will vacate upon his retirement next year.
Source: www.theguardian.com
