{"id":2649182,"date":"2026-08-25T07:43:02","date_gmt":"2026-08-25T11:43:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/when-trump-endorses-loyalists-they-dont-always-win\/"},"modified":"2026-08-25T07:59:44","modified_gmt":"2026-08-25T11:59:44","slug":"when-trump-endorses-loyalists-they-dont-always-win","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/when-trump-endorses-loyalists-they-dont-always-win\/","title":{"rendered":"When Trump endorses loyalists, they don&#8217;t always win"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">16<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fwhen-trump-endorses-loyalists-they-dont-always-win%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2649182&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article discusses President Donald Trump&#8217;s recent primary endorsement outcomes, emphasizing that his success rate is around 96-97%. While he has largely been victorious with his endorsements, some candidates he backed, especially those considered less electable or outside their customary regions, have lost. Trump attributes some losses to a lack of loyalty among candidates, noting that he often endorsed supporters he believed to be good people, even when their chances of winning were slim. Notable cases include endorsements for candidates like Mike Lindell and Catalina Lauf, both of whom did not win their races. Trump has also endorsed candidates for Senate and gubernatorial races across various states, with mixed results. His endorsement strategy varies; he sometimes supports frontrunners, other times backs opponents he seeks to defeat, and occasionally prioritizes loyalty over electability. The article also touches on Trump&#8217;s approach to staffing his second management, highlighting a trend towards more measured displays of loyalty, with some officials being moved to different roles rather than ousted. his relationship with former allies and political figures, such as Elon Musk and Pete Hegseth, has seen periods of tension and reconciliation. Trump&#8217;s endorsement power remains significant, but his choices and their outcomes illustrate both successes and setbacks in his influence over the Republican primary races.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<article class=\"fn-body\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Recent blemishes on President <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\">Donald Trump\u2019s<\/a> generally strong Republican primary endorsement track record may be attributable to the L-word: not liberalism, but loyalty. <\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A few Trump loyalists received coveted presidential endorsements that were not enough to salvage their floundering candidacies.<\/p>\n<section class=\"explore-more-section\" id=\"wex-recommended-widget\">\n<div class=\"magazine-container single\">\n<h1 class=\"magazine-title mt-2\">Recommended Stories<\/h1>\n<p>             <i class=\"fa-solid fa-play icon\"><\/i>         <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-grid\">\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4698901\/trump-loyalists-endorsements-midterm-primaries\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>When Trump endorses loyalists, they don\u2019t always win<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/4698796\/trump-pro-family-agenda-bipartisan-support-economic-anxiety-midterms\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Trump\u2019s pro-family agenda has won bipartisan support, but economic anxiety clouds GOP midterm hopes<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4698980\/el-sayed-trump-tariff-vanity-war-canada\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>El Sayed rips Trump\u2019s tariff \u2018vanity war\u2019 against Canada\u2019s Carney<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sen. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/darline-graham-nordone\/\">Darline Graham Nordone<\/a> (R-SC) will be the latest candidate to put Trump\u2019s endorsement power to the test in Tuesday\u2019s runoff to replace her late brother as the Republican nominee for a six-year <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/senate\/\">Senate<\/a> term.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-1\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-1\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-15\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-1\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Trump himself <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/@realDonaldTrump\/posts\/117147806182467462\">cited<\/a> loyalty as a factor in his unsuccessful endorsements while touting his overall record of helping Republicans across the finish line in their primaries.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe few that lost were done out of loyalty,\u201d Trump said.\u00a0\u201cIt was almost impossible for them to win but, I felt obligated to go with them because they were, in my opinion, good people!\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Pillow magnate <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/mike-lindell\/\">Mike Lindell<\/a> was <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/state\/4681613\/trump-minnesota-governor-primary-mike-lindell-endorsement\/\">Trump\u2019s choice for governor<\/a> in the Minnesota GOP primary. Lindell has fervently backed the president and repeatedly denied Trump lost the 2020 election. But Lindell was always a stretch electorally, and <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/state\/4682754\/mike-lindell-lisa-demuth-minnesota-governor\/\">he lost<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-2\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-2\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-16\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-2\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Trump endorsed the 33-year-old former administration official Catalina Lauf in the primary to succeed Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL), who successfully ran for the GOP gubernatorial nomination (also with Trump\u2019s endorsement). Lauf, similar to several other candidates in the carpetbagger-filled race, wasn\u2019t from Florida and had run for office in another state in the not-too-distant past. She lost the primary.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Reps. Cory Mills (R-FL) and Andy Ogles (R-TN) both had Trump\u2019s endorsement for reelection. They both lost their primaries. <\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Trump\u2019s endorsed candidates for governor in Wyoming, South Carolina, Georgia, and Iowa all lost their primaries, although he altered his Palmetto State endorsement to include both runoff candidates.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-3\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-3\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-17\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-3\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Now, Trump is going all in on the late Sen. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/lindsey-graham\/\">Lindsey Graham\u2019s<\/a> sister in South Carolina, even as she has committed gaffes befitting her status as a political neophyte. She has especially been light on national-security and foreign-policy details, in sharp contrast to her brother.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The late senator was a close friend and ally of Trump, who encouraged his sister not to just be a placeholder for the remainder of Lindsey Graham\u2019s term but to actually seek a full six-year Senate term this year. She finished first in the initial round of voting and now faces Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC) in Tuesday\u2019s runoff. <\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Trump has prevailed in 96% to 97% of the Republican primaries where he has endorsed this year, with only about a <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/4692828\/trump-96-percent-endorsement-success-rate-republicans-he-backed-who-lost\/\">dozen of his preferred candidates losing<\/a>. But his endorsements vary wildly. Sometimes, he simply throws his weight behind the candidate who is already most likely to win. In other primaries, he follows the base, such as when he endorsed Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton over incumbent Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX). And in other primaries, he spends significant political capital trying to defeat intraparty foes, as was the case with Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) this year.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-4\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-4\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-25\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-4\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Some Trump endorsements come with rallies and repeated stops along the campaign trail. Others are limited to stray Truth Social posts.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Loyalty was the buzzword when Trump looked to staff his second administration after winning back the White House in the 2024 election. He stocked his Cabinet and staff with strong public supporters.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But loyalty has been a bit more of a two-way street in Trump\u2019s second term. High-profile firings have been fewer, and officials who have been let go have generally been released from their duties far more gently than members of his turnover-prone first-term team. These appointees have often been given other jobs within the administration, such as when former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was named special envoy for the Shield of the Americas and former Attorney General Pam Bondi was appointed to a seat on the Presidential Council of Advisers on Science and Technology.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-5\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-5\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-26\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-5\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Trump\u2019s biggest second-term feud with an erstwhile ally, businessman and former DOGE chief Elon Musk, has been <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/politics\/trump-elon-musk-relationship-d4b57ce6\">largely resolved<\/a>, even if the two are not quite as close as they were after the election and at the beginning of 2025.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When Secretary of War <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/pete-hegseth\/\">Pete Hegseth<\/a> faced renewed bipartisan scrutiny, Trump <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/policy\/defense\/6014559-donald-trump-pete-hegseth-military-munitions-iran-war-clash-camp-david\/\">defended<\/a> him. \u201cThe Fake News, as usual, is spreading false and completely unfounded rumors,\u201d he <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/@realDonaldTrump\/posts\/117049594693768642\">wrote in a post<\/a> on Truth Social. \u201cI am extremely happy with the job that Pete Hegseth is doing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4460164\/trump-endorsement-tracker-gop-2026-election-primaries\/\"><strong>TRUMP ENDORSEMENT TRACKER: HERE\u2019S WHO THE PRESIDENT HAS PICKED IN GOP MIDTERM ELECTION PRIMARIES<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI think he\u2019s actually one of my best,\u201d Trump <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/news\/us-news\/trump-pete-hegseth-andy-ogles-loses-tennessee-morning-rundown-rcna591310\">told<\/a> NBC News earlier this month. \u201cI\u2019m very good at this stuff. Smart guy. He\u2019s very much into it. Respected by the military.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That\u2019s not to say things haven\u2019t ended badly at times for Republicans trying to curry favor with Trump, even during this term. But he has repaid loyalty more often, in some cases at the expense of a perfect primary endorsement record.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Trump\u2019s loyalty focus impacts primary endorsement outcomes<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2659,"featured_media":2649183,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP26234026676904.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[21510,82829,3634],"class_list":["post-2649182","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-endorsements","tag-political-loyalty","tag-trump"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP26234026676904.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2649182","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2659"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2649182"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2649182\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2649190,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2649182\/revisions\/2649190"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2649183"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2649182"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2649182"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2649182"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}