{"id":605,"date":"2026-05-27T21:10:05","date_gmt":"2026-05-27T21:10:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=605"},"modified":"2026-05-27T21:10:05","modified_gmt":"2026-05-27T21:10:05","slug":"trump-boasts-perfect-endorsement-record-in-118-gop-primaries-so-far-in-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=605","title":{"rendered":"Trump boasts perfect endorsement record in 118 GOP primaries so far in 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

WASHINGTON \u2014\u00a0President Trump is the undisputed GOP kingpin.<\/p>\n

The 79-year-old is reveling in a perfect endorsement track record across 118 Republican House, Senate, and gubernatorial primaries this cycle, illustrating how his influence within the party is stronger than it\u2019s ever been.<\/p>\n

Read more Jill Biden shockingly admits she thought Joe was \u2018having a stroke\u2019 during disastrous 2024 debate with Trump<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cAfter years of weak globalists and elitists leading our party, President Trump transformed the GOP into the party of the working class,\u201d Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) told The Post Wednesday. \u201cNewsflash to those who still have not caught on: Support the America First agenda or lose your election.\u201d<\/p>\n

While only about a third of the GOP primaries for 2026 have wrapped up, Trump-endorsed candidates have emerged triumphant in 110 congressional primaries \u2014 101 House races and nine Senate races, along with eight gubernatorial campaigns, according to a Fox News tracker \u2014 including the most hotly contested races of the cycle.<\/p>\n

Among the longtime incumbents to fall foul of Trump\u2019s electoral sway were Sens. John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Bill Cassidy (R-La.), as well the president\u2019s arch-nemesis in the House, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.).<\/p>\n

Cassidy\u2019s May 16 primary defeat made him the first Republican senator since Indiana\u2019s Richard Lugar in 2012 to not be nominated by party voters during a regular election cycle. <\/p>\n

Even in state legislative contests, Trump\u2019s stamp of approval has proven to be a lifeline \u2014 or a political kiss of death.<\/p>\n

Earlier this month, Trump-backed primary candidates took down five of seven Indiana state senators who defied him over mid-decade redistricting, though one of those losses is subject to a recount.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Republicans have real leadership \u2014 that\u2019s unquestionable,\u201d said veteran Democratic consultant Hank Sheinkopf. \u201cAnd the party faithful respond to him, respond to that leader, Donald Trump, and it\u2019s his political party.\u201d<\/p>\n

In all, the president has backed a Republican candidate in 295 2026 primaries \u2014 and more loyalty tests could be at hand after Trump threatened GOP Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) with a challenge over her support for Massie.<\/p>\n

However, a source familiar with the president\u2019s thinking claimed Wednesday that Trump was \u201cnot focused on Boebert right now. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s a next-cycle [2028] thing,\u201d this person said. \u201cHe may or may not weigh in on the Georgia Senate race and a number of other target House races. Probably some statewides, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s unblemished primary record is far more expansive than in 2018, his previous midterm in office, when he recorded a 95% success rate in GOP primaries from just 37 total endorsements, according to Ballotpedia.<\/p>\n

In 2022, when Trump was out of office, his chosen candidates enjoyed a 93% success rate in primaries, a percentage that improved to 96% in 2024, according to Ballotpedia.<\/p>\n

Henry Olsen, an elections expert and senior fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, said that Trump\u2019s role as GOP kingmaker would last at least until the end of his second term in January 2029, explaining the president had successfully \u201cmarried a charismatic personality with a worldview that was represented by people who had not had that view represented before.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump-backed candidates, Olsen said, are marked by an \u201caggressive\u201d nationalism \u2014 \u201cpursuing American interests but not international alliance interests\u201d \u2014 and are enthusiastic about rooting out \u201cnon-American\u201d ways of life that are being pushed by both \u201cpublic and private institutions of power.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Top NJ congressional hopeful volunteered with al-Qaeda-linked group in 1990s<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThat is now a majority view among Republicans,\u201d he added. \u201cThat philosophical change will outlast Trump\u2019s personal endorsement \u2026 Nothing is permanent, but for the foreseeable future, which is, say, the next two to eight years, that is the dominant feature of the Republican primary process.\u201d<\/p>\n

Olsen, who hosts the elections-focused podcast \u201cBeyond the Polls,\u201d went on to say that Trump \u201cmaintained his strong personal endorsement brand even after January 6th, before his return to strong popularity, he was able to push most of his choices through in the 2022 primaries, and I think we just need to remember that this is a long standing ability of his, and so there\u2019s no reason to think that it will decline any time before he leaves the Oval Office.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump has leveraged his remarkable endorsement strength both to help Republicans avoid otherwise messy primary fights and to pursue a political revenge tour.<\/p>\n

The former was the case in Michigan, where he backed Republican Mike Rogers for Senate early on, clearing the field of a potential challenger in Rep. Bill Huizenga (R-Mich.) so that the GOP could concentrate on what is seen as a key pickup opportunity.<\/p>\n

With Republicans fighting historical headwinds in the Nov. 3 midterms, the Trump team has been more careful about endorsing quality candidates after some GOP strategists felt that was an issue in the 2022 midterms. <\/p>\n

This go-around, potential endorsees are usually vetted by the White House political team before Trump officially backs them.<\/p>\n

It remains to be seen how effective this approach will be in the general election.<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s preferred candidates in 2024, 2022 and 2020 were elected at an 89%, 83% and 78% rate, respectively, according to Ballotpedia. In the 2018 midterms, just 59% of Trump-backed candidates were elected.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis [2026] is a referendum on him,\u201d Sheinkopf said. \u201cIt\u2019s not even a referendum on policies. Now in his own party, the referendum on him was played out in Texas \u2026 and he won that argument.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut when it comes to the referendum on him nationally, well, that\u2019s a different question,\u201d he added. \u201cIt\u2019s about Donald Trump \u2026 the same way in \u201994, it was about [President Bill] Clinton and the healthcare plan. Now it\u2019s about Trump, the [Iran] war, and costs.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

\u201cLarger figures in history tend to dominate the argument \u2014 and he\u2019s a large historical figure.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s endorsement power has also proven to be a useful cudgel against congressional Republicans should they choose to get out of line on key votes. <\/p>\n

In the short-term, it has led to headaches with the Senate GOP conference, as Cassidy and retiring Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC), among others, have grown more outspoken against Trump since his turn away from them.<\/p>\n

But his ability to vanquish GOP foes gives Trump critical leverage, signaling to rabble-rousers that he can destroy them politically if they get in his way.<\/p>\n

Read more Kendrick Perkins in wild altercation at AAU game: \u2018Probably won\u2019t be the last time\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

President Trump, 79, is reveling in a perfect endorsement track record for Republican House, Senate, and governor primary races that illustrate how his clout within the party is perhaps stronger than it’s ever been in past cycles.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":604,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-605","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics"],"yoast_head":"\nTrump boasts perfect endorsement record in 118 GOP primaries so far in 2026 - Metro Transit Review<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=605\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Trump boasts perfect endorsement record in 118 GOP primaries so far in 2026 - 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