Trump endorses Brent Taylor in Tennessee 9th District House race
Trump the president threw his backing behind the state senator, who also carries support from Senators Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty in the Memphis-area seat.
WASHINGTON D.C. — Donald Trump endorsed Tennessee state Senator Brent Taylor for the state’s 9th Congressional District.
Here is the full post on truthsocial: “It is my Great Honor to endorse Highly Respected State Senator, Brent Taylor, who is running to represent the Incredible People of Tennessee’s 9th Congressional District. Brent is strongly supported by the most Highly Respected MAGA Warriors in Tennessee, including both of your tremendous U.S. Senators, my friends, Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty! A Successful Businessman, and very popular State Senator, Brent has dedicated his life to serving his Community. As your next Congressman, Brent will work tirelessly to Grow our Economy, Champion our Amazing Farmers and Ranchers, Cut Taxes and Regulations, Promote MADE IN THE U.S.A., Unleash American Energy DOMINANCE, Keep our Border SECURE, Stop Migrant Crime, Ensure LAW AND ORDER, Support our Brave Military, Veterans, and Law Enforcement, Advance Election Integrity, and Protect our always under siege Second Amendment. Brent Taylor has my Complete and Total Endorsement to be the next Representative from Tennessee’s 9th Congressional District — HE WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN!”
The president called Taylor a successful businessman and popular legislator in the post on truthsocial, published on July 13, 2026 at 5:15 PM ET. He tied the endorsement to a slate of policy goals that included tax cuts, border security and defense of the Second Amendment.
“Brent Taylor has my Complete and Total Endorsement to be the next Representative from Tennessee’s 9th Congressional District,” Trump said in the post.
The backing carries added weight because it pairs Trump with both of Tennessee’s U.S. senators. Marsha Blackburn, the senior senator elected in 2018, and Bill Hagerty, the junior senator and former ambassador to Japan, both support Taylor, according to the post. Their names appear in the official Senate directory (see senate.gov).
The stakes reach beyond the candidate. Tennessee’s 9th Congressional District covers most of Memphis and has sent a Democrat to Washington for decades, according to congress.gov. A Republican endorsement fight there signals an effort to contest a seat that has long resisted the party. Brent Taylor represents Senate District 31 in the Tennessee General Assembly (see capitol.tn.gov).
For voters in Shelby County, the race decides who represents the state’s largest city in the House. Memphis is the second-most populous city in Tennessee, with more than 600,000 residents, according to census.gov. The winner will shape federal policy on the economy, crime and immigration for one of the region’s most watched districts.
Has this happened before? This is not the first time Trump has moved early to shape a Tennessee primary. He backed Blackburn in her 2018 Senate run and endorsed Hagerty in 2020, and both won their statewide contests, according to the Federal Election Commission (see fec.gov).
The next decision rests with primary voters in Tennessee’s 9th District, followed by the general election. The Tennessee Secretary of State administers the state’s election calendar (see sos.tn.gov). A specific primary date for the contest was not announced in the post.
Presidential endorsements have long reshaped House primaries, as happened before. In the 1938 midterms, President Franklin D. Roosevelt sought to purge conservative Democrats from Congress by campaigning against incumbents in their own primaries, according to Encyclopedia Britannica (see britannica.com). Most of the lawmakers he targeted survived, and the effort damaged his standing within his own party. The episode became a lasting caution about the limits of a president’s power to pick winners in local races.
Source: Zenger real-time database of all Truth Social posts.
Note: Chart generated on July 13, 2026 at 5:27 PM ET