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Massie ousted in Kentucky
Rep. Thomas Massie lost his bid for re-election in Kentucky’s 4th District on Tuesday, falling to challenger Ed Gallrein in a primary that Responsible Statecraft described as “the most expensive primary election in the U.S. history.”
“Massie’s defeat will no doubt be seen as a triumph of both the continued durability of pro-Israel forces in the party”
Responsible Statecraft reported Massie’s defeat as 54% to 45% with nearly all votes counted on Tuesday night, and it said the race drew attention from the Republican Jewish Coalition and AIPAC.
AIPAC posted on X after the result, writing, “Congratulations to US Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein for defeating anti-Israel incumbent Thomas Massie!”
The Times of Israel said the primary was centered on support for Israel and US President Donald Trump, and it described Massie as a critic of Israel who voted against US aid to Israel including its missile defense system, Iron Dome.
Spending, shell PACs, and claims
Al Jazeera reported that a 30-second election ad praising congressional candidate Bushra Amiwala aired in mid-March in Illinois, but the candidate quickly disavowed it and Al Jazeera said public records showed the commercial was paid for by a PAC associated with AIPAC.
Al Jazeera quoted Usamah Andrabi of Justice Democrats saying, “Every cycle AIPAC shows just how broken our democracy is and how corrupt our political finance system is,” as it described AIPAC pumping “tens of millions of dollars” into election campaigns.
In the Kentucky race, Zeteo said AIPAC’s super PAC called Massie “the most anti-Israel Republican in the House” and poured more than $4 million into the race to defeat him, while it said another anti-Massie super PAC spent another $5.6 million.
The Times of Israel said both sides ran ads with AI deepfakes and described Massie’s closing-days plan to register AIPAC under the Foreign Agents Registration Act, while also noting that AIPAC, the Republican Jewish Coalition and Christians United for Israel lined up behind Gallrein.
What’s at stake next
Al Jazeera said its review of Federal Election Commission receipts showed the sole funder of the Chicago Progressive Partnership was Elect Chicago Women (ECW), which it said contributed $1m to the partnership and raised more than $4m from United Democracy Project (UDP), described as the election arm of AIPAC.
“AIPAC contributed $1.3m to a third PAC, Affordable Chicago Now”
Al Jazeera also said AIPAC contributed $1.3m to a third PAC, Affordable Chicago Now, and it framed Palestinian rights advocates’ argument that “shell PACs” show how the pro-Israel group has become “toxic” among the US electorate.
Responsible Statecraft said Massie’s loss would be seen as a triumph of pro-Israel forces in the party and the president’s ability to dictate outcomes in intra-party races, and it quoted AIPAC praising Gallrein after the race was called.
Middle East Eye reported that the 68-year-old Gallrein, who had never held elected office before, would now be the Republican candidate for the House of Representatives in Kentucky’s 4th District in November’s midterm elections.
