Unfortunately, a great American patriot lost his primary last night. Rep. Andy Ogles is one of the few people in Congress who could accurately be described as consistently living up to the expectations and desires of the Republican base.
And a leftist clean energy PAC spent huge money on taking him down in the primary.
Rep. Andy Ogles, a member of the House Freedom Caucus and a Trump-endorsed incumbent, is upset in the Republican primary in TN-05 to Charlie Hatcher, who was backed by several prominent establishment-aligned Tennessee Republicans. https://t.co/wwRnYJ6zq2
— Zachary Donnini (@ZacharyDonnini) August 7, 2026
A total of $2 million in California-based solar special interest took Ogles down. In terms of raw numbers between Ogles and his primary opponent Charlie Hatcher, spending was neck and neck. Ogles spent the Hatcher campaign by about $15,000. California liberals were able to thumb the scales in a huge way.
Most of what people have groaned about in the aftermath of his loss have amounted to outside spending and redistricting (as the new Tennessee 5th District is far more rural than previously seen and Hatcher was the state’s agricultural commissioner), but they’ve missed another key point: Tennessee has open primaries.
Democrats are free to waltz in and vote for the candidate of their choice in Republican primaries in the state. Many Democrats in deep-red states do it in hopes of the more moderate candidate getting the nomination. The issue has captivated Texas politics, for instance, as people like John Cornyn pushed to keep primaries open over the need of Democrat crossover votes to retain power (although he’ll tell you it’s actually because Trump supporters would be left out of the primary process somehow).
That clearly played a role in Tennessee’s 5th District race last night. In 2024, just 56,000 individuals cast a ballot in the Republican primary. In 2022, the number was 57,000. In 2026, that number jumped more than 66,000 votes. That’s a nearly 20 percent increase over the last cycle…in a midterm year. And to make matters even more interesting, Ogles received a nearly identical number of votes as he did in 2024 with a change of just plus 50.
The combination of likely crossover voting and the big leftist money dropped on keeping Ogles out is a result of one thing: boldness.
Ogles dared to take on Hart-Cellar’s immigration status quo that sold out the American people. He dared to set his sights on the Islamification of the United States in the most outspoken way in Congress. He dared to up the cause of social conservatism that has been abandoned by many in the Republican Party. He listened to the base and moved to impeach an activist judge who blocked Trump's immigration policy.
And he didn’t just performatively pout on social media, he actually attempted to advance policy aimed at strengthening our nation. In a day and age of politicians who like to grift as America First, Ogles actually lived it out despite the pressure and hatred from the media and their left-wing goons. That can only be described as heroic.
Ogles made himself a target for the left and RINOs. He lost because of it. Don’t be dismayed though, because guys like Ogles have a strong future. He might have lost this race, but don’t think that his career is necessarily over. I believe that he’ll be back in some shape or form.
As for Charlie Hatcher, I hope that he legislates well. Trump quickly moved to endorse him after the primary (despite having endorsed Ogles leading up to the election), so hopefully he'll return the favor by not betraying Trump's (and the American people's) interests. He will have big shoes to fill in a time when bold leadership is a necessity. The American people are counting upon it.
