President Trump continued his hot streak Tuesday, powering several of his preferred Republican candidates to victory in key primary elections.
Here are nine takeaways from contests in Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Alabama and Georgia.
Trump takes out Thomas Massie in Kentucky
The president claimed his latest political scalp in the hotly-contested House primary for Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District.
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), who has been a thorn in Trump’s side for years, was defeated by the president’s hand-picked challenger, Ed Gallrein.
Gallrein, who had very little name ID prior to receiving Trump’s endorsement, beat Massie by about 10 percentage points.
Massie’s defeat in what will go down as the most expensive primary race in US history reinforces Trump’s dominance over Republican politics.
Massie hints he’s not done yet
The congressman’s supporters showered him in “2028” and “president” chants after his primary defeat – and Massie hinted that he may not be done with politics just yet.
“What happens in 2028? Oh, you want me to run Congress again? I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Massie said in response to the chants.
“Alright, you’ve made a compelling argument,” he added. “You’ve spoken your peace, but I need a medical margarita now.
“We’ll talk about it later.”
Squad-backed candidate wins in Pennsylvania
Self-styled Democratic Socialist state Rep. Chris Rabb won Pennsylvania’s 3rd District Democratic primary after receiving endorsements from far left “Squad” lawmakers.
Rabb, who is virtually assured to win the general election in the solidly blue district, was backed Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), Summer Lee (D-Pa.) and several other lefty congressional lawmakers.
Georgia Republicans who spoke out against Trump got smoked
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and former Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan – who were among the few Republicans to speak out against Trump’s attempt to overturn his 2020 loss in the Peach State – received middling support from voters in their gubernatorial bids.
Duncan, who ran in the Democratic primary, received about 7% of the vote in the race won by former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms.
Raffensperger, who famously defied Trump when asked to “find” votes in the Peach State after the 2020 election, received about 15% of the vote in the GOP gubernatorial primary and failed to make the runoff election.
Republicans will have to wait for their golden candidate to take down Sen. Jon Ossoff
Rep. Mike Collins (R-Ga.) and former college football coach Derek Dooley will head to a runoff election in the GOP Senate primary in Georgia after neither candidate received 50% of the vote.
Collins – at about 41% – was the top vote-getter, while Dooley, who was endorsed by Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, received about 30% support.
Trump has not endorsed a candidate in the contest.
Rep. Buddy Carter (R-Ga.) was the odd man out, finishing in third place with 25% of the vote.
Alabama governor’s race will be rematch of 2020 Senate election
Former Alabama Sen. Doug Jones, who served in the upper chamber from 2018 to 2021, won the Democratic primary for governor Tuesday night and will face retiring Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) in November.
Tuberville unseated Jones in the 2020 Alabama Senate race.
The Republican senator and former college football coach is the heavy favorite in the race to replace term-limited GOP Gov. Kay Ivey.
Alabama Senate primaries head to runoffs
Rep. Barry Moore (R-Ala.) clinched a spot in the Republican runoff election for the Alabama Senate seat being vacated by Tuberville.
Moore, who was endorsed by Trump, received just over 40% of the vote in Tuesday night’s primary.
The race for the second spot in the June 16 GOP runoff is still too close to call.
In the Democratic Senate primary, Everett Wess and Dakarai Larriett both advanced to the runoff.
The Republican nominee will be heavily favored in the November race.
Race to replace Mitch McConnell set
Rep. Andy Barr (R-Ky.) and former Democratic state Rep. Charles Booker won their respective primaries in the race to replace retiring Sen. Mitch McConnell in the Senate.
Barr has already received Trump’s endorsement.
Booker previously ran for Senate in 2022 but lost to incumbent Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.).
The Republican nominee will be heavily favored in November.
Midterm races set in Pennsylvania’s battleground House districts
Midterm matchups in several Pennsylvania swing districts were finalized in Tuesday night’s primary elections.
In Pennsylvania’s 1st Congressional District, incumbent Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) will take on Democrat Bob Harvie. The district went for former Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election but is rated a “likely” GOP seat by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report.
The Keystone State’s 7th Congressional District will see incumbent Rep. Ryan Mackenzie (R-Pa.) face retired firefighter and union boss Bob Brooks, who was endorsed by socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). The district narrowly went for President Trump in 2024 and is rated a “toss up” by the Cook Political Report.
In Pennsylvania’s 10th Congressional District, another “toss up” won by Trump in 2024, former news anchor Janelle Stelson will take on incumbent Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.).
