President Donald Trump’s beloved endorsement record has taken a hit during the 2026 midterm primary cycle, with 10 candidates so far being defeated despite having the president’s support.
Trump has long touted his near-perfect endorsement record over the last decade, and his backing is highly coveted in Republican circles. Trump’s support can often mean the difference between a win and a loss for GOP candidates going head to head, and candidates routinely tack the “Trump-endorsed” sticker on their campaign ads.
And while Trump’s record for the 2026 midterm elections has far more victories than defeats, his success rate has taken a hit over the last month.
So far in this midterm cycle, 10 Trump-backed candidates have lost their primaries in their respective races. Of those, five lost in their gubernatorial primaries; four in their House seats; and one running for attorney general.
As a result, it’s become one of Trump’s worst primary endorsement cycles he has on record — amassing more primary losses than his endorsements in 2018, 2020 and 2024 combined. Still, it hasn’t yet matched the number of losses from the 2022 midterm elections, during which he had 12 endorsements who failed to win their primaries.
Many of those candidates who lost in their primaries faced challenges beyond Trump’s control. Several faced allegations of assault, pending ethics investigations, or other controversies leading to a loss of support within their own party.
For some of those primaries — such as for Rep. Andy Ogles of Tennessee and Cory Mills of Florida, both of whom had Trump’s endorsement — the president conceded shortly after he didn’t think they had a chance.
Ogles, for example, “was a person who I remained loyal to even though he had virtually no chance of winning,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post. Trump then endorsed Charlie Hatcher, who defeated Ogles.
For Mills, Trump said he had told the embattled candidate to “get out of the Race, but he wouldn’t listen.” Trump then threw his support behind Ryan Elijah, a former TV anchor who defeated Mills.
There are still a handful of primaries that could further test Trump’s endorsement, including the Senate race in South Carolina. Trump threw his support behind Sen. Darline Graham, who was appointed to the position earlier this summer after the unexpected death of her brother, the late Sen. Lindsey Graham.
Despite having his endorsement, Darline Graham was forced into a runoff after failing to receive more than 50% of the vote during the special primary election. She faces Rep. Ralph Norman, who asked for Trump’s endorsement but was denied.
Darline Graham has faced some scrutiny in her bid to be elected to a full Senate term, particularly because of her lack of political experience and some stumbles during a high-profile debate against Norman, during which she conceded she is “not that informed on national security.”
In that case, it’s possible Trump could alter his endorsement — a tactic the president has used in the past.
That’s what happened in the South Carolina gubernatorial primary when Trump initially backed Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette, who was forced into a runoff against state Attorney General Alan Wilson. When the polls showed Wilson gaining favor, Trump decided to endorse both.
Wilson ultimately won the runoff.
Still, Trump’s endorsement has proved its potency in some cases. The president was successful in ousting a handful of long-serving Republican members of Congress after criticizing what he viewed as a lack of loyalty.
Those endorsements led to the defeats of Sens. John Cornyn in Texas and Bill Cassidy in Louisiana as well as the loss of Rep. Thomas Massie in Kentucky.
Overall, Trump has a primary endorsement record of 96% so far in 2026, according to Ballotpedia. That number may be skewed when taking into account races in which his preferred candidate ran unopposed.