President Donald Trump is weighing whether to pick sides in divisive Republican primary fights in several high-profile 2026 Senate races.
Trump has endorsed a slew of conservative loyalists up for reelection in safe seats next year who are less likely to criticize the president, such as Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Pete Ricketts (R-NE), Steve Daines (R-MT), and Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS). However, he’s notably declined to stake a position on consequential Senate primary battles in states such as Texas, Louisiana, North Carolina, and Kentucky.
It’s a long-running habit for Trump, who sometimes goes further by making multiple endorsements to avoid potentially picking the wrong candidate.
Trump’s latest dodge came Friday when he was prompted about getting involved in the Lone Star State’s contest between Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) and state Attorney General Ken Paxton.
“They’re both friends of mine. I like them both. In a way, I wish they weren’t running against each other,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One. “But I like Paxton. I like Cornyn. They’re both good people. I’ll make a decision somewhere along the line. But you have two very good men.”
Trump punted in a similar fashion earlier this month, telling reporters he would “make a determination” at a later date.
In North Carolina, Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) faces retired businessman and former candidate for lieutenant governor Andy Nilsson. State Treasurer John Fleming challenges Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) in Louisiana. And in Kentucky, where the GOP field is still taking form, it’s a duel between former state Attorney General Daniel Cameron and Rep. Andy Barr (R-KY) over who will succeed retiring Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY).
In all four states, the Republican senators and candidates have courted Trump’s seal of approval, an achievement most of them have garnered in prior elections.
Tillis indicated he has no plans to pitch Trump directly on an endorsement until this summer.
“President Trump and I have a good relationship. I’m probably a little bit different in the way that I communicate with the president, but I’ve shown him respect and given him my view on how to avoid pitfalls, and I think that’s resulted in a good relationship,” Tillis told the Washington Examiner. “There’s a whole cottage industry in the far left and the far right that are just trying to create primaries so they can make money. I get that. But at the end of the day, I defy anybody to say, in areas that matter, tell me where I’ve departed from the president.”
Trump’s checkered record of choosing the ultimate victor has occasionally led to double or triple endorsements. The latest came last week when he endorsed Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ) for Arizona governor after already endorsing Republican Karrin Taylor Robson in December 2024.
In the 2022 cycle, Trump notoriously endorsed “Eric” in the Missouri Senate race. However, three GOP contenders had the same first name: former state Attorney General Eric Schmitt, former Gov. Eric Greitens (R-MO), and long shot Eric McElroy. Schmitt ultimately won the primary and sailed to victory in the general.
Anything other than endorsing incumbent Republican senators will put Trump at odds with the party’s national campaign arm, whose standard policy is to support sitting members with money and other resources.
In Texas, for example, National Republican Senatorial Committee Chairman Tim Scott (R-SC) quickly endorsed Cornyn as a “leader who delivers on President Trump’s agenda,” describing him as an “essential part of the Republican Senate majority” after Paxton launched his campaign. Meanwhile, staunch Trump defender Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) is declining to pick a side.
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Kentucky and Louisiana are safe seats for Republicans in 2026. Democrats have their sights set on North Carolina as a prime pickup opportunity and Texas, which is more of a long shot and seen by Democrats as a perennial prospect to flip blue.
Tillis and Cassidy will likely face the greatest hurdles to earning Trump’s endorsement this go-around, which they both secured for their reelections during his first term. Since then, Cassidy voted to convict Trump in his second impeachment trial for the 2021 Capitol riot, and Tillis has a history of criticizing Trump’s policies that is viewed by some in the Make America Great Again base as disloyal or insufficiently conservative.
David Sivak contributed to this report.
