For the first time in this midterm cycle, a candidate backed by President Donald Trump has lost a primary race. In Iowa, Representative Randy Feenstra conceded defeat to businessman Zach Lahn after Trump’s late endorsement failed to deliver the votes, ending a streak that had held unbroken through every major primary contest since March.
According to NBC News, which tracked results across all six states voting today, no Trump-endorsed candidate for governor, the House, or the Senate had lost a primary before Tuesday night. Iowa broke that record.
The biggest race of the evening remains unresolved. California’s contest to succeed outgoing Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom is still too close to call, with results coming in slowly from the state’s largest counties. Voters across California also weighed in on a competitive Los Angeles mayoral race, where incumbent Mayor Karen Bass is seeking a second term against a field that includes reality television personality Spencer Pratt. Senator John Fetterman publicly called Pratt “a creep” this week after reports of inappropriate messages surfaced, drawing unusual national attention to what is typically a local contest.
Voters cast ballots today in California, Iowa, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, and South Dakota, the largest single primary day of the 2026 midterm cycle. The results will set the battle lines for November, when control of both the House and Senate is at stake. Republicans hold razor-thin majorities in both chambers.
The Supreme Court also ruled today, according to the Associated Press, that Alabama may use a Republican-favoring congressional map for the November midterms, eliminating a seat that had been held by a Black Democrat. The ruling was immediately condemned by civil rights organizations and is expected to be cited in ongoing redistricting litigation across multiple states.
The broader backdrop cannot be ignored. These primaries are taking place while the United States is fighting a war with Iran, with energy prices elevated, inflation persistent, and a Moody’s credit downgrade still fresh in the markets. Every result tonight carries that weight. Voters are exhausted, and the candidates who understand that exhaustion appear to be the ones performing best.
As Trump’s streak ends in Iowa, the question hanging over November is whether this is an isolated exception or the beginning of a trend.