Donald Trump demonstrated his continued dominance over the Republican Party on Tuesday as voters in northern Kentucky ousted seven-term congressman Thomas Massie in favour of the US president's chosen challenger, Ed Gallrein. The retired Navy Seal and farmer defeated the incumbent in a primary election for Kentucky's fourth congressional district, a race that Trump's allies framed as a test of whether dissent could still exist within the modern Republican Party.
The contest was part of the largest primary night of the year so far, with voters in Pennsylvania, Georgia, Alabama, Oregon and Idaho also heading to the polls to decide their nominees for the November general election. In Georgia, lieutenant governor Burt Jones and billionaire Rick Jackson advanced to a runoff for the GOP gubernatorial nomination, locking out secretary of state Brad Raffensperger, another prominent Trump critic. Meanwhile, in Alabama, Trump ally Tommy Tuberville won the Republican primary for governor.
Massie, a libertarian-leaning conservative, had repeatedly clashed with Trump over issues including military action against Iran, government spending and the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files. The president branded Massie a 'moron', a 'nut job' and a 'loser', and dispatched top advisers to run a Super PAC against him. Trump also travelled to Kentucky for a rally denouncing the congressman as 'disloyal to the United States of America'. Following Massie's defeat, Trump told reporters: 'He was a bad guy. He deserves to lose.'
Gallrein campaigned as a loyal supporter of Trump's agenda, accusing Massie of 'Trump derangement syndrome' and pledging to 'stand shoulder to shoulder' with the White House. The race became the most expensive House primary battle in history, with spending of $25.6m on television, radio and digital advertising, according to the Hill website. Massie conceded defeat on Tuesday evening, issuing a plea for 'basic decency' in politics and noting that he still had seven months left in Congress.
