HEBRON, Ky. — In the final hours ahead of the primary, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth appeared in Northern Kentucky to throw his support behind Republican Ed Gallrein.

What You Need To Know

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth appeared in Northern Kentucky on Monday to support Republican Ed Gallrein

Gallrein is challenging incumbent Rep. Thomas Massie in Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District primary

Hegseth said the Trump administration is backing Gallrein because it wants stronger support in Washington

The race has become a nationalized test of Massie’s willingness to break with President Donald Trump

Gallrein faces incumbent Thomas Massie in a race that has become highly nationalized. 

Speaking Monday afternoon in front of a crowd of around 100 people, Gallrein highlighted the backing of the Trump administration and why, he said, it is supporting him instead of his opponent. 

Ed Gallrein spent the day before the primary election stumping with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. (Spectrum News 1/Mason Brighton)

“I came home from wars and I looked at Washington and the misrepresentation of our values, and I said, somebody’s got to do something that just well be me,” Gallrein said.

Hegseth made clear why the administration is backing Massie’s opponent.

“President Trump does not need more people in Washington who are trying to make a point, especially from his own party. He needs people willing to help him win, to vote with him when it matters the most,” Hegseth said.

Massie has broken from fellow Republicans on issues like foreign aid and the Iran war, and has previously said he considers this race a referendum that will test whether critics of the president can stay in office.

“When conservatives are fighting the most radical left in American history, too often massie’s instinct is to throw elbows at fellow Republicans,” Hegseth said.

Massie is seeking an eighth term in Congress and rose to national notoriety last year with his work to release a trove of documents related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Gallrein, whose congressional bid is his second venture into politics, has run a campaign focused on backing the president.

His remarks Monday focused on his military career and support for the president’s vision for the U.S. armed forces.

“Kentucky has a choice in this race. You can send a warrior, reinforcements for the president in our shared fight against the radical left. Or you can send an obstructionist,” Hegseth said.

Massie has faced little opposition in every other primary he has been in.