Donald J. Trump has endorsed more than 200 candidates for state and federal office during the 2022 midterm elections, an unusually wide-ranging effort by a former president to consolidate and enhance his personal political influence.
The main objective for both parties in a midterm election year is to capture control of the next Congress, state legislatures and governor’s offices. But turning blue seats red has not been a central focus for Mr. Trump as he weighs an increasingly likely third bid for the White House in 2024. Instead, a New York Times analysis shows his endorsements fall into two major categories: election deniers who have openly spread the lie that he won in 2020, and incumbents whose likely victories — in some cases uncontested — help sensationalize his power inside the party.
Meanwhile, a much smaller percentage of Mr. Trump’s endorsements have been aimed at Democratic seats that would help Republicans win back the majorities in the House and Senate that his party lost while he was in the White House.
The unifying thread through the majority of Mr. Trump’s endorsements has been a candidate’s willingness to help him spread the lie that he won the 2020 presidential race. Many of these candidates either took concrete actions to subvert the election, such...
"I will note that in 2024, troops were -- that was Joe Biden by the way, Joe Biden -- were deployed to polling locations in 15 states," Hegseth said April 29, 2026 before the House of Representati...