Republican Texas Rep. Dan Crenshaw lost his bid for a fifth term in the House by a wide margin to a conservative primary challenger.
Crenshaw lost to Republican Texas State Rep. Steve Toth, who was supported by Republican Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, 56% to 40%, with 88% of the vote in, the Associated Press projected. He was notably the only incumbent Republican member of Congress from Texas to not receive an endorsement from President Donald Trump — who remained neutral during the primary — despite Crenshaw voting for Trump’s stated position 100% of the time, according to the Texas Tribune.
The 41-year-old is the first congressional incumbent to lose reelection in the 2026 midterms. As Texas’ 2nd congressional district is safely Republican, Toth, who avoided a runoff due to winning a majority of the vote, is all but certain to win the November general election.
“Congressional District 2 voters want a representative in D.C. who will stand firm in his convictions, fight for his constituents, and follow through on his promises. I won’t let them down,” the New York-born Toth, 65, said in a news release declaring victory, shortly before outlets called his race, the Texas Tribune reported.
Crenshaw, a former SEAL, had been a high-profile member of Congress since he appeared on “Saturday Night Live” shortly after he won his first term. He drew fire from some conservatives, including Daily Caller co-founder Tucker Carlson, over his staunch support for Ukraine and has also notably sparred with Cruz and Fox News host Jesse Watters, Fox News reported.
In February 2025, Crenshaw was caught on video saying he would kill Carlson while talking with GB News reporter Steven Edginton. Crenshaw denied the allegation when asked by then-Republican Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, but Edginton later posted video of Crenshaw’s comments.
“No, we’ve talked a lot on Twitter. If I ever meet him I’ll fucking kill him,” Crenshaw apparently said on the video Edginton posted about before adding, “No, seriously, I’ll kill him. He’s the worst person I’ve ever met.”
Crenshaw also clashed with Republican Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville after Tuberville blocked the confirmation of military nominees during a dispute over the Biden administration’s policy of paying for female service members to travel to get abortions after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022.
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