President Trump’s drive to exile one of his last remaining Republican critics in Congress has become the most expensive House primary contest in recent years, blitzing voters in northern Kentucky with pointed and sometimes ugly advertisements.
Nearly $33 million has been spent on ads and other media in the race between Representative Thomas Massie, an outspoken critic of the president on the Epstein files and the war with Iran, and his Trump-backed challenger, Ed Gallrein, according to the media tracking firm AdImpact. That’s the highest total spent on a House primary race since the firm started keeping track in 2018.
The Kentucky race is just one of several primary contests on Tuesday that will test the power of big money. Here’s a look, with help from AdImpact data and federal and state financial filings:
The must-watch House contest in Kentucky
Supporters of Mr. Trump, as well as pro-Israel groups that are unhappy with Mr. Massie over his opposition to the war with Iran, have spent heavily to defeat the congressman.
They and other advertisers have laid out nearly $19 million against Mr. Massie or in favor of Mr. Gallrein. Last summer, Mr. Trump’s aides even started a super PAC, MAGA KY, for the purpose of ousting Mr. Massie, drawing support from the Republican megadonor Paul Singer and a super PAC heavily funded by Miriam Adelson, another megadonor and supporter of Mr. Trump. Two pro-Israel groups, including one tied to the influential American Israel Public Affairs Committee, spent over $9 million against him.
But Mr. Massie has had his own financial backing, including from a mysterious new super PAC that has spent $6.5 million in the final six weeks of the race. That group, Kentucky 4th PAC, has not disclosed any donors.
The race is also notable because the two sides have hurled A.I.-generated deepfake ads at each other. In one pro-Massie ad by Kentucky 4th PAC, Mr. Gallrein, a retired Navy SEAL, is depicted in an A.I. video leaving Mr. Trump on a battlefield.
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