Thomas Massie Had Candace Owens, Cenk Uygur and Nick Fuentes Behind Him - and Still Lost

Thomas Massie's doomed Kentucky primary campaign produced one of the strangest political coalitions in recent memory, a support base that stretched from far-left to far-right, united by a shared hostility toward Israel and AIPAC, and absolutely nothing else.

When Massie lost to Trump-backed Ed Gallrein on Tuesday night in what became the most expensive House primary in American history, it wasn't just the defeat of a libertarian congressman. It was the collapse of an odd-bedfellows alliance that had no business existing.

The Coalition That Wasn't

Conservative commentator Candace Owens backed Massie, with supporters rallying around him online under the banner of anti-establishment grievance. Owens, who has increasingly clashed with mainstream conservatism over Israel, declared on X that "a vote for Gallrein is a vote for Jeffrey Epstein," pointing to Massie's small-donor fundraising versus the millions poured in against him by outside groups.

On the left, Cenk Uygur of The Young Turks had Massie on his show the night before the primary, warning that "if Massie loses, the Republicans will become Israel's Party." The appearance was widely mocked, Kentucky holds a closed primary, meaning only registered Republicans could vote, making Cenk Uygur's audience essentially irrelevant to the outcome.

Dan Bilzerian, the influencer and Republican congressional candidate, endorsed Massie on X, writing: "Every person that cares about what's best for the country should endorse @RepThomasMassie against his AIPAC funded opponent." Bilzerian, who is himself running for Congress in Florida's 6th district, has made headlines in recent years for antisemitic remarks and conspiracy theories.

Nick Fuentes, the white nationalist streamer, orbited the campaign's fringes. At one Massie rally, one prominent antisemitic influencer walked around in an "American Reich" T-shirt, and another attendee wore an "America First" hat tied to Fuentes. Separately, Kyle Rittenhouse attended a Massie rally, and Stewart Rhodes, the Oath Keepers founder convicted of seditious conspiracy for his role in January 6, attended multiple Massie events and told Slate he was knocking on doors for the Kentucky congressman.

Fuentes himself, meanwhile, had by that point soured on the entire Republican Party. He told his followers to "not vote in the midterms, and if you do, vote Democrat," urging a "reckoning against the GOP" to clear the field for a challenger in 2028.

What It Actually Means

The through-line connecting all of them was opposition to AIPAC and U.S. support for Israel, not any coherent political philosophy. Massie, an anti-war libertarian, found himself cheered on by people who agree on little except their animosity toward Israel and Jewish influence in American politics.

Massie was also fundraising from anti-war Muslim-American activists and leftist-aligned PACs, making him simultaneously the hero of the anti-establishment right and a cause célèbre for the progressive anti-Israel left.

It didn't work. Gallrein beat Massie in the most expensive U.S. House primary on record, with more than $32 million in ad spending. Republican primary voters in deep-red northern Kentucky chose Trump's man, not the coalition of fringe figures cheering from the internet. In his concession speech, Massie made the subtext text — joking that it took him a while to find Gallrein "in Tel Aviv." His supporters in the room chanted "No more wars" and, at points, "F*** Israel."

The strange alliance had delivered its message. And then it lost.