GOP Rep. Thomas Massie may be out of the running for the 120th Congress, but that doesn’t mean the controversial Kentucky legislator is going to stop rankling his critics — even in defeat.
After losing a Republican primary where critics had charged Massie’s anti-Israel sentiment had morphed into anti-Semitism, Massie gave a concession speech where he said he was late because he had to “find” his rival “in Tel Aviv.”
Much of the focus of Tuesday’s race had been on President Donald Trump’s endorsement of Massie’s challenger, military veteran Ed Gallrein, and the fact that Massie had bucked his party on innumerable votes. Massie has represented Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District since 2012.
Along with leftist Democratic California Rep. Ro Khanna, the libertarian-leaning Massie had also been one of the loudest voices in Congress claiming that the government’s files on disgraced and deceased financier Jeffrey Epstein hid something more nefarious than had already been let on.
However, there were also accusations of anti-Semitic dog whistles in Massie’s words and actions, and those concerns were amplified after Gallrein won a convincing 54.9 to 45.1 percent victory over the incumbent. The race was the most expensive House primary in history.
Massie’s seat is considered a safe Republican hold, meaning that Gallrein likely has a seat in the 120th Congress sewn up. Massie was not magnanimous in concession.
“I would’ve come out sooner, but I had to call my opponent and concede. And it took a while to find Ed Gallrein in Tel Aviv,” Massie told supporters, before seeming to nod to the following he’d accrued on the anti-Israel left and fringe right.
“People that want somebody that will go along to get along – I’ve never heard of that strategy, but that seems to be what the voters want. But not the young voters,” he said.
🚨 JUST IN — REP. THOMAS MASSIE CONCEDES: “I would’ve come out sooner, but I had to call my opponent and concede.”
“And it took a while to find Ed Gallrein in Tel Aviv.”
“I have called and conceded the race.” pic.twitter.com/8Y70wGzp36
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) May 20, 2026
According to The Associated Press, the crowd at the concession speech chanted “no more wars” and “America first!” before he took the stage.
“We stirred up something. There is a yearning in this country for someone who will vote for principles over party,” Massie said.
However, the content of Massie’s principles had been a concern for many in his own party.
Massie hadn’t just opposed the military action in Iran — this was predictable, as Massie was a hard isolationist.
The Times of Israel noted that he voted with the so-called far-left “squad” — Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar etc. — against an October 2023 resolution that supported Israel in the wake of Hamas’ terror attack that killed 1,400 Israelis.
Then, in November of 2023, he became the only representative, Democrat or Republican, who voted “no” on a resolution reaffirming Israel’s right to exist as a sovereign state. He also frequently opposed any military aid to the Jewish state, saying he was opposed to “sending our money overseas” and “starting another proxy war.”
During Israel’s war against Hamas, he also accused the country of “indiscriminate bombing” in Gaza,” saying that the war was “no rational argument American taxpayers should be paying for it. With tens of thousands of civilian casualties, there’s a moral dilemma too.”
Before the Oct. 7 attacks, he also posted a meme that said the COVID vaccine was akin to concentration camp tattoos given to prisoners by Nazis.
This year’s primary campaign was no different, with Massie-aligned PACs running an ad accusing one of Gallrein’s backers, Paul Singer, of being a “far-left trans activist” and, seizing upon his Jewish heritage, showed him with a rainbow-patterned Star of David behind his head in one television ad.
He added that the race was “a referendum on whether the Israeli lobby can buy a seat in Kentucky. Paul Singer is among those.”
In his victory speech, Gallrein appeared to shrug off the attacks, calling them politics as usual.
“We have a saying on the family farm that it’s a contact sport,” Gallrein said, according to the AP. “I can tell you that campaigning is one as well folks.”
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