Controversial US Congressman Andy Ogles lost the Republican primary in Tennessee on Thursday despite receiving public support from President Donald Trump. Ogles, criticized for anti-Muslim statements, was defeated by former Tennessee agriculture commissioner Charlie Hatcher. With about 90 percent of votes counted, Hatcher led by 6.6 percentage points.

Ogles, first elected to Congress in 2022, competed in a newly redrawn congressional district after Tennessee revised electoral boundaries to preserve the Republican majority. In March, he wrote on X that Muslims had no place in American society and that pluralism was a lie. In 2024, his remarks about Palestinian children killed in US-funded attacks drew nationwide condemnation.

Hatcher had publicly rejected Ogles’s anti-Muslim remarks, saying many Muslims are law-abiding US citizens and that Muslim members of the military are skilled and brave soldiers. He also received support from Tennessee Governor Bill Lee late in the contest. Hatcher will face Democratic candidate and Columbia mayor Chaz Molder in November, as Democrats seek to contest the Republican-leaning district amid economic discontent and the Iran war issue.