NEW: Trump-Backed GOP Rep. Loses Primary Bid In Shock Upset
Published 1 hour ago
on August 7, 2026
By Cullen McCue
U.S. Rep. Andy Ogles (R-TN) lost his primary bid for re-election in Tennessee’s 5th Congressional District to Charlie Hatcher, the state’s former agriculture commissioner. The narrow upset loss comes despite the fact that Ogles was backed by President Donald Trump and other prominent Republican figures.
With most ballots counted, Hatcher received approximately 53.2 percent of the vote to Ogles’ 46.8 percent, a margin of roughly six percentage points. The Associated Press and other notable election forecasters called the race for Hatcher roughly three hours after polls closed.
Ogles is a member of the House Freedom Caucus, the most conservative bloc within the Republican conference. Multiple scorecards have ranked him among the more conservative members of the House. Heritage Action assigned him a 100 percent score for the relevant Congress and a perfect lifetime score since his election.
Freedom Index evaluations have placed him in the mid-to-high 90s in prior sessions, and he has appeared near the top of composite “America First” voting rankings that average several conservative scorecards.
The primary took place in a significantly redrawn district following redistricting efforts earlier this year. Back in May, following a U.S. Supreme Court decision that limited the application of the Voting Rights Act in the creation of majority-minority districts, the Republican-controlled Tennessee legislature enacted a new congressional map that significantly impacted the Nashville area.
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