Twelve members of the U.S. Congress have already lost their primaries during the 2026 election cycle, according to a count by The Hill.

The list includes veteran figures and lawmakers who were defeated by rivals backed by influential sectors of their own parties.

Why it matters: The losses show that holding a seat does not guarantee survival in a primary and reflect internal disputes that could change the composition of Congress after the November elections.

Lawmakers Who Lost Their Primaries in 2026

Among Republicans, two of the most significant losses occurred in the Senate: Bill Cassidy, from Louisiana, and John Cornyn, from Texas.

Cassidy finished third in the Republican primary in May. Julia Letlow then secured the nomination in a runoff against John Fleming.

Cornyn also failed to survive his primary. Although he had supported Trump, the president backed Ken Paxton in the final days of the Republican runoff.

The fact: Cassidy and Cornyn are the two incumbent senators included in the list of defeated lawmakers.

In the House, Thomas Massie, Dan Crenshaw, and Andy Ogles complete the group of defeated Republicans.

Massie faced Ed Gallrein, backed by Trump, after having opposed the law known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill” and having pushed for the disclosure of files related to Jeffrey Epstein.

Crenshaw lost to Steve Toth in Texas, while Ogles fell to Charlie Hatcher in Tennessee despite having Trump’s support.

Seven Democrats Were Knocked Out of the Race

The primaries also hit Democratic lawmakers, including several with years of experience in Washington.

Al Green and Julie Johnson, both from Texas, lost after redistricting altered their respective contests.

In New York, Adriano Espaillat, chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, was defeated by Darializa Ávila Chevalier.

Dan Goldman, in turn, lost to Brad Lander by more than 30 points.

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In numbers: Of the ten representatives defeated so far, seven are Democrats and three are Republicans.
Left-wing candidates displace several incumbents

Some Democratic losses show the advance of candidates located further to the left of the party.

In Colorado, Diana DeGette lost by double digits to Melat Kiros, a Democratic socialist backed by Senator Bernie Sanders.

In Michigan, Shri Thanedar was defeated by Donavan McKinney, another candidate backed by Sanders.

The trend: The victories of Kiros, McKinney, and Ávila Chevalier show how younger or more left-wing candidates managed to displace incumbent lawmakers.

John Larson Completes the List of 12 Defeated Lawmakers

The most recent loss occurred in Connecticut. John Larson, who had represented the state’s 1st Congressional District for nearly 30 years, lost the primary on Tuesday to Luke Bronin by more than 20 points.

Bronin, the former mayor of Hartford, had the backing of the state Democratic Party and former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.

What’s next: There are still primaries to be held over the next month, so the number of defeated incumbent lawmakers could increase before the general election.

The count so far leaves 12 names: Cassidy, Cornyn, Massie, Crenshaw, Green, Johnson, Espaillat, Goldman, DeGette, Thanedar, Ogles, and Larson.

Their losses reflect different internal battles, but they have one thing in common: this election cycle is putting even those with a guaranteed place in Washington to the test.