Trump-Backed Candidates Dominate Southern Primaries, Setting Stage for Contentious General Elections
Tuesday’s wave of primary elections across the South reaffirmed former President Donald Trump’s enduring sway over the Republican Party, as multiple candidates he endorsed secured key victories or advanced to runoffs in Alabama, Kentucky, and Georgia. The results have clarified several high-stakes general election matchups that could determine whether Democrats can make inroads in traditionally Republican strongholds amid lingering questions about Trump’s popularity.
In Alabama, Sen. Tommy Tuberville easily won the Republican nomination for governor, positioning him for a rematch against former Sen. Doug Jones, who prevailed in the Democratic primary. Tuberville, who defeated Jones in the 2020 Senate contest, will enter the general election as a heavy favorite in the deeply red state. The Cook Political Report currently rates the race as solidly Republican.
During his victory speech, Jones, one of the few Democrats to achieve statewide success in Alabama in recent memory, centered his message on economic issues. He pledged to raise the minimum wage and expand Medicaid coverage if elected. Tuberville, for his part, vowed to campaign aggressively against what he called “socialism and communism” over the coming months.
In the race to succeed Tuberville in the Senate, Trump-endorsed Rep. Barry Moore took a commanding lead, finishing well ahead of former Navy SEAL Jared Hudson and Attorney General Steve Marshall. Moore is expected to face the second-place finisher in a runoff, with the eventual Republican nominee heavily favored to win the seat in November.
The most dramatic contest of the night unfolded in Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District, where Trump-backed challenger Ed Gallrein, a decorated former Navy SEAL, defeated incumbent Rep. Thomas Massie. The primary became the most expensive House race in American history, underscoring the intense battle for control of the GOP.
Massie, who had broken with Trump on several issues including the handling of the Epstein files and policy toward Iran, used his concession speech to sharply criticize the former president and his media allies. “I got to watch Fox also for the first time in 18 months,” Massie told supporters, referencing high gas prices and what he described as Trump’s grandiose plans. “They’re talking about this big ballroom they’re going to build, and it looks like the Roman Empire. I see a few analogies there.”
Massie had also opposed extending Trump’s first-term tax cuts, which benefited roughly 85 percent of Americans, and had resisted enhanced border security measures.
Elsewhere in Kentucky, Trump-backed Rep. Andy Barr won the Republican primary to replace retiring Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. On the Democratic side, former state Rep. Charles Booker defeated Amy McGrath, a retired Marine fighter pilot, in a reversal of their 2020 matchup.
Georgia delivered another closely watched set of results. In the Republican primary for governor, Trump-backed Lt. Gov. Burt Jones led billionaire Rick Jackson by approximately six percentage points, but neither candidate reached the 50 percent threshold needed to avoid a June 16 runoff. Notably, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger — who drew Trump’s ire after the 2020 election — was eliminated from contention.
Former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms secured the Democratic nomination for governor after leading in most pre-election polls. She will face the winner of the GOP runoff in November in a contest that the Cook Political Report rates as a toss-up, one of the most competitive gubernatorial races in the country.
For the U.S. Senate in Georgia, incumbent Sen. Jon Ossoff faced no Democratic opposition. Republicans advanced former football coach Derek Dooley, backed by term-limited Gov. Brian Kemp, and Rep. Mike Collins to a June 16 runoff.
Overall, the primaries highlighted Trump’s continued ability to shape the Republican field in Southern states, often at the expense of incumbents or party figures perceived as insufficiently loyal. While these results strengthen Trump-aligned candidates heading into the midterms, the general election landscape will test whether Democrats can capitalize on any vulnerabilities related to Trump’s approval ratings in states that remain challenging terrain for their party.
The outcomes in Georgia’s toss-up governor’s race and Alabama’s marquee matchup between Tuberville and Jones are expected to draw significant national attention in the months ahead.
