Tertius News is an AI-native newsroom: an AI model reads the source articles linked below — on this story, all of them from one outlet — and extracts what that outlet reported, claim by claim. How this works →
New information became available — this story may be updated shortly.
Trump-backed candidates keep losing
Republican primary voters dealt President Donald Trump a series of setbacks on Tuesday, with his endorsed candidates losing in Wyoming and two Florida congressional races. The defeats bring the number of Trump-endorsed candidates rejected this cycle to 10, matching the total from 2018, 2020 and 2024 combined, according to a CNN analysis.
Republican primary voters dealt President Donald Trump a series of setbacks on Tuesday, with his endorsed candidates losing in Wyoming and two congressional races in Florida. Nearly 300,000 voters participated in the Republican contests across the three races, but candidates backed by Trump secured only about 28% of the combined vote, underscoring growing resistance to the president's endorsements within his own party.
The latest defeats bring the number of Trump-endorsed candidates rejected by Republican primary voters this election cycle to 10. That figure matches the combined number of Trump-backed candidates who lost Republican primaries in 2018, 2020 and 2024, according to a CNN analysis based on Trump endorsements compiled by Ballotpedia. It is also nearing the record of 12 losses recorded during the 2022 primary season, when half of those defeats came in Georgia.
Six of the 10 Trump-backed candidates who have lost this year were defeated in August alone, including Minnesota gubernatorial candidate Mike Lindell, Tennessee Rep. Andy Ogles and Michigan congressional candidate Amir Hassan.
Losses in key races
In Wyoming, Megan Degenfelder was defeated in the gubernatorial primary, receiving less than 30% of the vote. In Florida's 19th Congressional District, Catalina Lauf lost to Jim Schwartzel, securing about 22% of the vote.
In the Florida 7th Congressional District, Rep. Cory Mills, a Trump-endorsed incumbent, lost to former news anchor Ryan Elijah. Trump had endorsed Mills in February and never publicly rescinded his support, but the president appeared to distance himself from Mills after the loss. Trump said he had urged Mills to drop out of the race before the primary, and Mills was conspicuously absent from a list Trump posted earlier this month of Florida Republicans he endorsed. Trump did not participate in tele-rallies on behalf of Mills, which he has done for several lawmakers he supports.
Mills has denied any wrongdoing regarding allegations of assault, potential campaign finance violations, and an ex-girlfriend's accusation that he threatened to release sexually explicit images and videos of her. The Ethics Committee is currently looking into multiple allegations against Mills, including campaign finance violations and sexual misconduct. Mills told CNN in April that he would not resign from Congress despite calls from some Republicans to step down amid the allegations. He said House Speaker Mike Johnson had told him in conversations not to give up his seat; Johnson did not directly confirm the exchange to CNN but said Mills should be afforded due process. Mills has also been under investigation by DC police for allegedly assaulting an individual, and a judge previously ordered him not to have any contact with the ex-girlfriend who accused him of threatening to release the images and videos.
Reps. Anna Paulina Luna and Mike Haridopolos endorsed Elijah earlier this month, breaking with Mills. Trump carried the Florida 7th Congressional District by 13 points in 2024. Elijah is set to face Democrat Bale Dalton in the general election.
Broader trends and upcoming tests
The losses are part of a broader pattern this primary season. Five Trump-endorsed gubernatorial candidates have now lost, compared with three in 2022. Trump-backed candidates have also lost 42% of the gubernatorial primaries in which he did not endorse an incumbent, five out of 12 contests.
A recent CNN poll found that between 30% and 50% or more of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents expressed dissatisfaction with Trump on several key issues. However, Trump had notable victories on Tuesday, including Byron Donalds winning the Florida gubernatorial primary with approximately 47.8% of the vote.
A White House official told Politico that Trump had a 98 percent success rate with endorsements, with 233 wins from 238 endorsements, though Politico reported that the White House did not provide the underlying list for that claim. A South Carolina Senate poll in July found that 46% of undecided Republican primary voters said a Trump endorsement would make them more likely to support a candidate.
Trump has endorsed Anthony DiLorenzo in New Hampshire's 1st Congressional District and appointed Sen. Darline Graham for a special election in South Carolina. During a debate, Graham acknowledged she was 'not ... that informed on national security' when asked whether Taiwan should be considered a US national security issue. A defeat would make Graham only the fourth Trump-backed Senate candidate to lose a primary, after Alabama's Luther Strange in 2017, West Virginia's Evan Jenkins in 2018 and Utah's Trent Staggs in 2024.
The next test for Trump will be two runoffs on August 25, in South Carolina and Oklahoma.
How this outlet told it
Moneycontrol
Framing: Headline frames the story as a sign that Trump's endorsement is losing its edge, focusing on the cumulative number of losses and the percentage of votes, rather than on any one candidate or specific allegations. — Analytical and cautionary. It notes 'growing resistance' and 'signals his influence is weakening.' The phrase 'underscoring growing resistance to the president's endorsements' carries a tone of concern for Trump's political capital.
Facts Included:
Nearly 300,000 voters participated in the Republican contests in Wyoming and two congressional races in Florida.
Trump-endorsed candidates secured only about 28% of the combined vote.
These losses bring the total number of Trump-endorsed candidates rejected by Republican primary voters this cycle to 10.
The 10 defeats match the combined number of Trump-backed losses in 2018, 2020 and 2024, per CNN analysis of Ballotpedia data.
The number is approaching the record of 12 losses in 2022, when half were in Georgia.
Megan Dygenfelder won the Wyoming governor's race, and Rep. Cora Mill and Catalina lauf lost in Florida.
Six of the 10 losses came in August, including Mike Lindell, Andy Ogles and Amir Hassan.
Five Trump-endorsed gubernatorial candidates have lost, compared to three in 2022.
Trump-backed candidates have lost 42% of gubernatorial primaries where he did not endorse an incumbent (5 out of 12).
Dygenfelder received less than 30% of the vote, Lauf about 22%.
Trump has endorsed Anthony DiLorenzo in New Hampshire and appointed Darline Graham for a South Carolina special election.
Graham acknowledged she was 'not that informed' on national security during a debate with Ralph Northam.
Only three Trump-backed Senate candidates have lost in primaries (Strange, Jenkins, Staggs) before.
A CNN poll found that 30% to 50% or more of Republican and Trump-leaning independents expressed dissatisfaction on some key issues.
Trump appears to have distance from Mills after his loss, with a messge on social media.
Trump did not publicly pressure Mills before the defeat.
Each row is one claim, attributed to the outlet whose wording states it most clearly. Confidence rates how directly the source text states the claim — explicit and unhedged rates high; hedged, pieced-together, or internally inconsistent statements rate lower. It does not measure whether the claim is true. Status counts the distinct outlets we found asserting it — so a single-source claim can still show high confidence, and a multi-source claim can show medium. Every one of those outlets is named beside the status, so you can check the count against the list. For claims extracted before we began storing that list, the row says so: it names the outlet the claim is quoted from and states that we have not recorded which outlets backed it. Outlets wrote at different times, so a figure that evolves — a casualty count, for example — can legitimately differ between rows; check the "as of" time next to each claim's source.
Claim
Confidence
Status
ClaimDonald Trump said he had urged GOP Rep. Cory Mills to drop out of his Florida primary race before Mills lost Tuesday to former news anchor Ryan Elijah.
ClaimMills has denied any wrongdoing regarding the allegations of assault, potential campaign finance violations, and an ex-girlfriend's accusation that he threatened to release sexually explicit images and videos of her.
ClaimTrump told Ohio Rep. Max Miller in a call that he was going to lose his election and lose for the Republican Party if he kept up his reelection bid, according to two sources briefed on the call.
ClaimMills told CNN in April that he would not resign from Congress despite calls from some Republicans to step down amid the allegations of sexual misconduct.
ClaimThe Ethics Committee is currently looking into multiple allegations made against Mills, including campaign finance violations and sexual misconduct.
ClaimA judge previously ordered Mills not to have any contact with the ex-girlfriend who accused him of having threatened to release sexually explicit images and videos of her after their relationship ended.
ClaimThe 10 defeats match the combined number of Trump-backed candidates who lost Republican primaries in 2018, 2020 and 2024, according to a CNN analysis based on Trump endorsements compiled by Ballotpedia.
ClaimDuring a debate, Darline Graham acknowledged she was 'not ... that informed on national security' when asked whether Taiwan should be considered a US national security issue.
ClaimA defeat would make Graham only the fourth Trump-backed Senate candidate to lose a primary, after Alabama's Luther Strange in 2017, West Virginia's Evan Jenkins in 2018 and Utah's Trent Staggs in 2024.
ClaimA recent CNN poll found that between 30% and 50% or more of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents expressed dissatisfaction with Trump on several key issues.
ClaimA South Carolina Senate poll in July found that 46% of undecided Republican primary voters said a Trump endorsement would make them more likely to support a candidate.