At the Races: The revenge tour continues

By Daniela Altimari and Mary Ellen McIntire

Posted May 19, 2026 at 5:00am

Welcome to a special edition of At the Races! Throughout the 2026 primary season, watch for these updates from the CQ Roll Call campaign team on what you need to know for election day. Know someone who’d like to get this newsletter? They can subscribe here.

By Daniela Altimari and Mary Ellen McIntire

Tuesday marks a major day on the primary calendar, with important contests in Georgia, Pennsylvania and Alabama, among others.

But one of the cycle’s costliest – and perhaps most caustic – primaries is playing out in eastern Kentucky, where Republican Rep. Thomas Massie, a libertarian who has sparred with President Donald Trump over the release of the Epstein files, faces the president’s hand-picked challenger, farmer and former Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein.

The race has drawn an influx of outside spending, much of it from pro-Israel groups attacking Massie. Trump has beat a drumbeat for Gallrein, calling Massie “a lightweight” and a “totally ineffective loser,” and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth visited the district Monday to stump for Gallrein.

If Gallrein defeats Massie, it would mark the second win for Trump in a few days: Over the weekend, another of the president’s electoral targets, Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy, saw his political career draw to a close after coming in third in the state’s GOP primary behind a Trump-recruited opponent and the state treasurer.

The Massie-Gallrein brawl isn’t the only competitive primary Tuesday in the Bluegrass State. In the race to succeed retiring Sen. Mitch McConnell, Republicans’ choices include Trump-backed Rep. Andy Barr and former state Attorney General Daniel Cameron, after businessman Nate Morris dropped out to take an ambassador appointment in the administration.

Barr, meanwhile, is leaving behind an open Central Kentucky seat that Democrats are targeting this year. Former state Sen. Ralph Alvarado has Trump’s endorsement in the GOP primary, while Democrats have a crowded contest to pick their nominee.

Georgia

Georgia Republicans are selecting an opponent for Jon Ossoff, the most vulnerable Senate Democrat. The main contenders are Reps. Earl L. “Buddy” Carter and Mike Collins and former football coach Derek Dooley, who’s backed by Gov. Brian Kemp. If no one receives more than 50 percent of the vote, the top two finishers will compete in a runoff on June 16.

The Peach State is also playing host to several competitive primaries for House seats seen as safe for either party. In the Savannah-based 1st District, Republican Jim Kingston, whose father held the seat for more than two decades, is Trump’s pick to succeed Carter. In the 10th District vacated by Collins, Trump is supporting state Rep. Houston Gaines.

The president has not endorsed in the open 11th District, where Republican Barry Loudermilk is retiring. Another GOP primary to keep an eye on is the 9th District, where Trump ally Andrew Clyde faces two challengers.

Meanwhile, Democrats will pick a likely successor to the late Rep. David Scott in the Atlanta-area 13th District. Scott died in April, but his name remains on the primary ballot. Leading candidates include state Rep. Jasmine Clark, educator Everton Blair and state Sen. Emanuel Jones.

Pennsylvania

Come November, Pennsylvania could hand either party the keys to the House majority.

So much so that in three of the four House districts expected to be competitive this fall, the primaries have been essentially settled for months, with candidates already looking ahead to the general election.

In the Lehigh Valley, however, four Democrats are competing in a tense primary for the 7th District to take on freshman Republican Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, one of the most vulnerable House members this year. The DCCC is backing firefighter union leader Bob Brooks, who notably also has the support of Gov. Josh Shapiro and Sen. Bernie Sanders, two leaders from different wings of the party.

Democrats in the deep-blue 3rd District in Philadelphia are also locked in a closely watched primary that is likely to pick the successor to retiring Rep. Dwight Evans.

The leading candidates include state Rep. Chris Rabb, who is backed by much of the party’s progressive wing; state Sen. Sharif Street, the son of a former Philadelphia mayor; and pediatric surgeon Ala Stanford, who has the support of Evans.

Alabama

The Republican primary in the race to succeed Sen. Tommy Tuberville, who is running for governor, includes Rep. Barry Moore, who has the coveted Trump endorsement, state Attorney General Steve Marshall and former Navy SEAL Jared Hudson. If no one clears a simple majority Tuesday, the top two vote-getters will head to a June 16 runoff.

Alabama is also holding primaries for its seven House districts, although the results in four seats won’t count. The state is preparing to hold special August primaries for those districts, where the boundaries are changing as Alabama joins several other GOP-controlled Southern states in redrawing their congressional maps after last month’s Supreme Court ruling that weakened Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act.