As the midterm primary season enters the homestretch, the candidates endorsed by former President Donald Trump continue to rack up primary wins.
That is partly by design: Of the more than 200 Republicans Trump has endorsed this year, many ran unopposed or faced little-known, poorly funded opponents. He has also waited to make some endorsements until a clear front-runner has emerged, strategically picking the candidates most likely to win — take, for instance, his last-minute endorsement of Tudor Dixon in Michigan’s Republican primary for governor.
But several of his endorsed candidates were defeated in early primaries, including notable losses in Georgia and North Carolina. For candidates like J.D. Vance in Ohio and Mehmet Oz in Pennsylvania, however, Trump’s support was crucial to securing victory — and his preferred candidates have won in large numbers in the most recent races, including in two important swing states, Arizona and Michigan.
Here is a look at Trump’s endorsement record.
A sweep in Arizona
Former local television news host Kari Lake won the Republican primary for governor with Trump’s endorsement, narrowly defeating Karrin Taylor Robson, who was the choice of establishment Republicans. Lake has forcefully promoted Trump’s false claims that the 2020 election was stolen.
Blake Masters, a venture capitalist who has pushed a version of the “great replacement” conspiracy theory, won his Senate primary and will challenge Sen. Mark Kelly, a vulnerable Democrat, in November.
State Rep. Mark Finchem, who is affiliated with the far-right Oath Keepers militia group and said before the primary that he would not concede if he lost, won the Republican nomination for secretary of state, a position in which he would be responsible for overseeing Arizona elections.
And David Farnsworth, another Trump endorsee, won a state Senate primary against Rusty Bowers, the Arizona House speaker who drew Trump supporters’ fury for resisting efforts to overturn the 2020 election and for testifying before the Jan. 6 congressional committee.
Pro-impeachment Republican lost in Michigan
Rep. Peter Meijer, one of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump, lost his primary to a Trump-backed challenger, John Gibbs, in Michigan’s 3rd Congressional District.
In Georgia, several losses and one victory
Gov. Brian Kemp easily defeated former Sen. David Perdue, Trump’s hand-picked candidate, in the Republican primary for governor. Kemp became a Trump target after he refused to overturn the president’s loss in the state in 2020. He will face the Democratic nominee, Stacey Abrams, whom he narrowly defeated four years ago.
Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, who refused Trump’s demand to “find” additional votes after his 2020 loss, also defeated a Trump-backed challenger, Rep. Jody Hice.
Attorney General Chris Carr defeated John Gordon, a Trump-backed opponent, with more than 73% of the vote.
In a primary runoff for an open seat in Georgia’s 6th Congressional District, Rich McCormick, a physician and retired Marine, defeated the Trump-backed candidate Jake Evans, a former chair of Georgia’s ethics commission and the son of a Trump administration ambassador.
Former professional football star Herschel Walker, who was endorsed by Trump, dominated a Senate primary and will face Sen. Raphael Warnock, a Democrat and prolific fundraiser, in the general election.
Victories in Pennsylvania
After a close race that prompted a recount, Mehmet Oz, Trump’s choice, won the state’s Senate primary, narrowly defeating David McCormick.
Doug Mastriano, a state senator and retired Army colonel who has promoted false claims about the 2020 election and attended the protest leading up to the Capitol riot, won the Republican nomination for governor. Trump had endorsed him just a few days before the primary.
Two wins and a loss in North Carolina
Rep. Ted Budd won the Republican nomination for Senate, and Bo Hines, a 26-year-old political novice who enthralled Trump, was catapulted to victory in his primary for a House seat outside Raleigh.
But Rep. Madison Cawthorn crumbled under the weight of repeated scandals and blunders. He was ousted in his primary, a stinging rejection of a Trump-endorsed candidate. Voters chose Chuck Edwards, a state senator.
A split in South Carolina House races
Rep. Tom Rice, one of 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, was ousted by his Trump-backed challenger, state Rep. Russell Fry, in the 7th Congressional District.
But Rep. Nancy Mace defeated her Trump-backed challenger, former state lawmaker Katie Arrington, in the 1st Congressional District. Mace had said that Trump bore responsibility for the Jan. 6 attack, but did not vote to impeach him. She had support from Nikki Haley and Mick Mulvaney, who both held office in the state before working in the Trump administration.
Election deniers win in Nevada
Adam Laxalt won a Senate primary and will face the incumbent, Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, who is seen as one of the most vulnerable Democrats this fall. Laxalt, a former attorney general, was endorsed by Trump and had helped lead his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results in Nevada.
Joseph Lombardo, the Las Vegas sheriff, won the Republican nomination for governor and will face the Democratic incumbent, Gov. Steve Sisolak.
Victories in Illinois, with outside help
State Sen. Darren Bailey, who got a last-minute endorsement from Trump, won the Republican primary for governor. Democratic spending, including by Gov. J.B. Pritzker, may have helped Bailey, whom Democrats saw as easier to beat in the general election than the other Republicans.
Rep. Mary Miller, whom Trump endorsed months ago, won her primary against fellow Rep. Rodney Davis after redistricting put them in the same district.
Victories in Ohio
Senate candidate J.D. Vance defeated a field of well-funded candidates, nearly all of whom pitched themselves as Trump-like Republicans. Vance, an author and venture capitalist, had transformed himself from a self-described “never-Trump guy” in 2016 to a Trump-supported “America First” candidate in 2022.
Max Miller, a former Trump aide who denied assault allegations from an ex-girlfriend and was later endorsed by Trump, won his House primary after two other Republican incumbents opted not to run.
Trump also endorsed Madison Gesiotto Gilbert, a lawyer who had been a surrogate for his presidential campaign. She won a seven-way primary for a congressional seat.
In Maryland, a win aided by Democrats
Dan Cox, a first-term state legislator who embraced Trump’s lies about the 2020 election, handily defeated Kelly Schulz in the Republican primary for governor. Schulz was seen as a protégé of Gov. Larry Hogan, a leader of the party’s anti-Trump wing.
Cox benefited from more than $1.16 million in television advertising from the Democratic Governors Association, which helped his primary campaign in hopes that he would be easier to defeat in the general election.
A victory in West Virginia
Rep. Alex Mooney prevailed over Rep. David McKinley in a newly drawn congressional district. Trump’s endorsement was seen as the decisive factor.
A loss in Nebraska
Charles W. Herbster, a wealthy agribusiness executive, lost his three-way primary to Jim Pillen, a University of Nebraska regent supported by Gov. Pete Ricketts, who has long clashed with Trump and is term-limited. Late in the campaign, Herbster was accused of groping several women. He denied the accusations.
And another loss in Idaho
Gov. Brad Little overcame Trump’s endorsement of the state’s lieutenant governor, Janice McGeachin, who was challenging him in the Republican primary.