Rep. Dan Crenshaw loses to Republican primary challenger in Texas
Posted For: MugsMalone
Texas state Rep. Steve Toth defeated Rep. Dan Crenshaw in a Republican primary in Texas, NBC News projects, unseating the incumbent after a race focused heavily on which candidate was more closely aligned with President Donald Trump.
Crenshaw becomes the first sitting member of Congress to lose renomination in the 2026 midterm election cycle.
Toth challenged Crenshaw from the right in the solidly Republican 2nd District. Crenshaw was the only sitting Republican congressman seeking re-election in Tuesday’s primaries who did not receive President Trump’s endorsement. Toth argued that Crenshaw’s positions on foreign policy and immigration did not align closely enough with the MAGA movement. An ordained pastor, Toth also received a late endorsement from Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas.
Crenshaw has occasionally broken with some members of his party, including supporting aid for Ukraine and criticizing claims from Trump allies that the 2020 election was stolen. However, during the campaign the four-term congressman emphasized his support for the president and his policies.
“If you think I’m not MAGA enough, then you’re not following me on social media, that’s the reality,” Crenshaw said during a February interview with the Houston Chronicle editorial board. “If you don’t think I support Trump enough, then you’re not following me, you’re not listening to a thing I say. I’m out there defending his policies pretty hard and have defended them in extremely hard places in the past.”
More recently, Crenshaw praised the United States’ military operation in Iran and said after the State of the Union address that he was “proud to stand unapologetically for this country with President Trump.”
On his campaign website, Crenshaw also pushed back against claims that he had abandoned the president and no longer supported the America First agenda.
“Pay no attention to the grifters online who lie about Dan’s record,” the site stated. “They create this fake outrage for clickbait because that’s how they make their living.”
Crenshaw was first elected to Congress in 2018 after winning a crowded Republican primary. Before entering politics, he served as a Navy SEAL and lost his right eye during a combat deployment in Afghanistan. Following the injury, he deployed overseas two more times.
On the campaign trail, Toth leaned into his reputation as one of the Texas Legislature’s most conservative members and highlighted his previous endorsements from President Trump.
“I’ve been really consistent — I was endorsed by President Trump in 2022 and 2024. Why?” Toth said at a campaign event last month, sharing the video online. “Because I really believe that we’ve got to fight against the grain, which is: Republicans win elections, they take office. Democrats win elections and they wield power.”
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