Report: Trump could endorse Barr in KY Senate race ... but also might not endorse
The palace intrigue surrounding President Donald Trump’s endorsement in Kentucky’s May Republican U.S. Senate primary has begun.
After many months of a heated race with no hint from the president on whether he’d endorse among the candidates running to replace Sen. Mitch McConnell, the Wall Street Journal reported late Wednesday that Trump “is leaning toward endorsing” Rep. Andy Barr, according to “people familiar with the matter.”
The outlet added a caveat from someone referenced as a “senior White House official.” They confirmed to the outlet that Trump was “supportive of Barr and leaning toward endorsing him,” but hadn’t made a final decision.
Barr is joined in the race by former Attorney General Daniel Cameron and Lexington tech entrepreneur Nate Morris. All three have sought to tie themselves to Trump and his policies.
Trump’s leanings, and reports on his leanings, have not always translated into endorsements. Earlier this year, Trump was reportedly leaning toward picking Texas Sen. John Cornyn over Ken Paxton, the state’s attorney general, in their heated primary. That never materialized.
Support for Cornyn versus Paxton tracks somewhat with support for Barr versus Morris. Like Cornyn, Barr has spent a much longer career in Washington and has gained the backing of many of his colleagues. Like Paxton, Morris, a first-time candidate who has largely self-funded, has garnered endorsements from prominent conservative organizations like CPAC and Turning Point USA. Morris launched his campaign alongside late Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk.
At a March rally in Northern Kentucky, Trump gave a shoutout on stage to all three candidates. The primary political purpose of that rally was to support Ed Gallrein, Trump’s pick against 4th Congressional District Rep. Thomas Massie, who has stood up against Trump on a variety of issues.
Though the comments were brief, some viewed it as a sign Trump would not pick between one of the three leading candidates.
No polling on the race has been released in nearly a month, but Barr led in the most recent poll from Emerson College and TV station FOX56. That survey had Barr with 28%, Cameron with 21% and Morris at 15%.
Polling prior to the most recent survey, conducted in late March, showed a neck-and-neck race between Barr and Cameron — that includes an internal mid-March poll from Barr’s team with Cameron up by two — and Morris slowly gaining ground on the more seasoned politicians.
The Wall Street Journal story pointed out that Trump’s alleged leaning would cut against the wishes of some major allies. Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, gave a political action committee supporting Morris $10 million earlier this year. Morris counts Vice President JD Vance as a friend, and hired people in his orbit to lead his political team. Morris is also friendly with Donald Trump, Jr., appearing on his podcast multiple times.
Barr and Morris, who made his fortune founding a waste technology company, have far outspent Cameron. Barr, a powerful member of the House Financial Services Committee, has received the strongest support from high-dollar donors in Kentucky as well as Washington and Wall Street.
Many Kentucky donors linked closely with McConnell have backed Barr. Cameron — a former protege of McConnell — and Morris are both keen to point that out; Morris made anti-McConnell messaging a key part of his initial campaign.
“It’s probably the worst-kept secret in town that the McConnell team is helping the Barr team,” Cameron said earlier this year.
A one-term AG who lost a bid for governor against Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear in 2023, Cameron has high name ID in the state and led the early polling before Barr pulled closer and led in the last poll. Groups backing both Barr and Morris have carpeted the state with TV ads, compared to few ads supporting Cameron.
