Kentucky's 4th Congressional District election, 2026 (May 19 Republican primary)

← 2024
Kentucky's 4th Congressional District
Democratic primary Republican primary General election
Election details
Filing deadline: January 9, 2026
Primary: May 19, 2026 General: November 3, 2026
How to vote
Poll times: 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Voting in Kentucky
Race ratings
Cook Political Report: Solid Republican DDHQ and The Hill: Pending Inside Elections: Solid Republican Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe Republican
Ballotpedia analysis
U.S. Senate battlegrounds U.S. House battlegrounds Federal and state primary competitiveness Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2026
See also
Kentucky's 4th Congressional District U.S. Senate • 1st • 2nd • 3rd • 4th • 5th • 6th Kentucky elections, 2026 U.S. Congress elections, 2026 U.S. Senate elections, 2026 U.S. House elections, 2026 Alabama U.S. House racesAlaska U.S. House raceArizona U.S. House racesArkansas U.S. House racesCalifornia U.S. House racesColorado U.S. House racesConnecticut U.S. House racesDelaware U.S. House raceFlorida U.S. House racesGeorgia U.S. House racesHawaii U.S. House racesIdaho U.S. House racesIllinois U.S. House racesIndiana U.S. House racesIowa U.S. House racesKansas U.S. House racesKentucky U.S. House racesLouisiana U.S. House racesMaine U.S. House racesMaryland U.S. House racesMassachusetts U.S. House racesMichigan U.S. House racesMinnesota U.S. House racesMississippi U.S. House racesMissouri U.S. House racesMontana U.S. House racesNebraska U.S. House racesNevada U.S. House racesNew Hampshire U.S. House racesNew Jersey U.S. House racesNew Mexico U.S. House racesNew York U.S. House racesNorth Carolina U.S. House racesNorth Dakota U.S. House raceOhio U.S. House racesOklahoma U.S. House racesOregon U.S. House racesPennsylvania U.S. House racesRhode Island U.S. House racesSouth Carolina U.S. House racesSouth Dakota U.S. House raceTennessee U.S. House racesTexas U.S. House racesUtah U.S. House racesVermont U.S. House raceVirginia U.S. House racesWashington U.S. House racesWest Virginia U.S. House racesWisconsin U.S. House racesWyoming U.S. House raceSubmit

A Republican Party primary takes place on May 19, 2026, in Kentucky's 4th Congressional District to determine which Republican candidate will run in the district's general election on November 3, 2026.

Candidate filing deadline	Primary election	General election
January 9, 2026	May 19, 2026	November 3, 2026

A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. Kentucky utilizes a closed primary process, in which only registered party members can participate.

For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.

This page focuses on Kentucky's 4th Congressional District Republican primary. For more in-depth information on the district's Democratic primary and the general election, see the following pages:

• Kentucky's 4th Congressional District election, 2026 (May 19 Democratic primary)
• Kentucky's 4th Congressional District election, 2026

Candidates and election results

Note: The following list includes official candidates only. Ballotpedia defines official candidates as people who:

• Register with a federal or state campaign finance agency before the candidate filing deadline
• Appear on candidate lists released by government election agencies
  

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Kentucky District 4

Incumbent Thomas Massie, Nicole Lee Ethington, Ed Gallrein, and Robert Wells Jr. are running in the Republican primary for U.S. House Kentucky District 4 on May 19, 2026.

		Candidate
		Thomas Massie
		Nicole Lee Ethington
	Submit photo	Ed Gallrein
	Submit photo	Robert Wells Jr.

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Candidate profiles

This section includes candidate profiles that may be created in one of two ways: either the candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey, or Ballotpedia staff may compile a profile based on campaign websites, advertisements, and public statements after identifying the candidate as noteworthy. For more on how we select candidates to include, click here.

Nicole Lee Ethington

Party: Republican Party

Incumbent: No

Political Office: None

Submitted Biography:  "Niki Lee Ethington is a registered nurse, wife, mother, and lifelong Kentuckian who has dedicated her life to serving others. She has worked across the country, including during the COVID-19 pandemic, providing critical care in NICUs, long-term care facilities, behavioral health, and more. A lifelong Kentuckian, Niki has lived on a farm in Spencer County for over 20 years and understands the struggles facing working families in Kentucky’s 4th District. Frustrated with out-of-touch politicians, Niki is stepping up to fight for Kentucky values in Washington. She is running for U.S. Congress (KY-4) as a Republican to put America First, secure the border, protect parental rights, and defend Kentucky jobs from government overreach. Her campaign motto is “Kentucky First. America Always.” From saving lives to saving Kentucky, Niki is ready to take her bold, conservative leadership to Washington and stand with President Trump to restore American greatness"

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Key Messages

To read this candidate's full survey responses, click here.

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I will fight to put Kentucky families, workers, and small businesses first—not the Washington establishment. I will stand up against government overreach, defend Kentucky jobs, and ensure our economy thrives by promoting energy independence, lowering taxes, and supporting local industries.

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America has a border crisis that threatens our national security, economy, and families. I will fight to finish the wall, stop illegal immigration, and end taxpayer-funded benefits for non-citizens. Protecting our communities starts with enforcing the law and standing up for the safety of American families.

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I will protect parental rights, fight for the unborn, and defend women and girls in sports. Our constitutional rights—including free speech, gun rights, and religious liberty—are under attack, and I will never back down in defending faith, family, and freedom in Kentucky’s 4th District.

Voting information

See also: Voting in Kentucky

Ballotpedia will publish the dates and deadlines related to this election as they are made available.

Campaign finance

Name	Party	Receipts*	Disbursements**	Cash on hand	Date
Thomas Massie	Republican Party	$1,813,513	$706,769	$2,013,753	As of September 30, 2025
Nicole Lee Ethington	Republican Party	$0	$0	$0	Data not available***
Ed Gallrein	Republican Party	$0	$0	$0	Data not available***
Robert Wells Jr.	Republican Party	$0	$0	$0	Data not available***
Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2026. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC). * According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee." ** According to the FEC, a disbursement "is a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit or gift of money or anything of value to influence a federal election," plus other kinds of payments not made to influence a federal election. *** Candidate either did not report any receipts or disbursements to the FEC, or Ballotpedia did not find an FEC candidate ID.

District analysis

Click the tabs below to view information about voter composition, past elections, and demographics in both the district and the state.

• District map - A map of the district in place for the election.
• Competitiveness - Information about the competitiveness of 2026 U.S. House elections in the state.
• Presidential elections - Information about presidential elections in the district and the state.
• State party control - The partisan makeup of the state's congressional delegation and state government.

• District map
• Competitiveness
• Presidential elections
• State party control

Below is the district map in place for this election. Click the map below to enlarge it.

See also: Primary election competitiveness in state and federal government, 2026

Information about competitiveness will be added here as it becomes available.

Partisan Voter Index

See also: The Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index

Heading into the 2026 elections, based on results from the 2024 and 2020 presidential elections, the Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district is R+18. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were 18 percentage points more Republican than the national average. This made Kentucky's 4th the 50th most Republican district nationally.

2020 presidential election results

The table below shows what the vote in the 2024 presidential election was in this district. The presidential election data was compiled by The Downballot.

2024 presidential results in Kentucky's 4th Congressional District

Kamala Harris	Donald Trump
31.0%	67.0%

Presidential voting history

See also: Presidential election in Kentucky, 2024

Kentucky presidential election results (1900-2024)

• 16 Democratic wins
• 16 Republican wins

Year	1900	1904	1908	1912	1916	1920	1924	1928	1932	1936	1940	1944	1948	1952	1956	1960	1964	1968	1972	1976	1980	1984	1988	1992	1996	2000	2004	2008	2012	2016	2020	2024
Winning Party	D	D	D	D	D	D	R	R	D	D	D	D	D	D	R	R	D	R	R	D	R	R	R	D	D	R	R	R	R	R	R	R

See also: Party control of Kentucky state government

Congressional delegation

The table below displays the partisan composition of Kentucky's congressional delegation as of October 2025.

Congressional Partisan Breakdown from Kentucky
Party	U.S. Senate	U.S. House	Total
Democratic	0	1	1
Republican	2	5	7
Independent	0	0	0
Vacancies	0	0	0
Total	2	6	8

State executive

The table below displays the officeholders in Kentucky's top four state executive offices as of October 2025.

State executive officials in Kentucky, October 2025

Office	Officeholder
Governor	Andy Beshear
Lieutenant Governor	Jacqueline Coleman
Secretary of State	Michael Adams
Attorney General	Russell Coleman

State legislature

Kentucky State Senate

Party		As of October 2025
	Democratic Party	5
	Republican Party	32
	Other	0
	Vacancies	1
Total		38

Kentucky House of Representatives

Party		As of October 2025
	Democratic Party	20
	Republican Party	80
	Other	0
	Vacancies	0
Total		100

Trifecta control

Kentucky Party Control: 1992-2025
Eight years of Democratic trifectas  •  Three years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

Year	92	93	94	95	96	97	98	99	00	01	02	03	04	05	06	07	08	09	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25
Governor	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	R	R	R	R	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	R	R	R	R	D	D	D	D	D	D
Senate	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R
House	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R

Ballot access

The table below details filing requirements for U.S. House candidates in Kentucky in the 2026 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Kentucky, click here.

Filing requirements for U.S. House candidates, 2026
State	Office	Party	Signatures required	Filing fee	Filing deadline	Source
Kentucky	U.S. House	Ballot-qualified party	2	500	1/9/2026	Source
Kentucky	U.S. House	Unaffiliated	400	500	6/2/2026	Source

See also

• Kentucky's 4th Congressional District election, 2026 (May 19 Democratic primary)
• Kentucky's 4th Congressional District election, 2026
• United States House elections in Kentucky, 2026 (May 19 Democratic primaries)
• United States House elections in Kentucky, 2026 (May 19 Republican primaries)
• United States House Democratic Party primaries, 2026
• United States House Republican Party primaries, 2026
• United States House of Representatives elections, 2026
• U.S. House battlegrounds, 2026

External links

Suggest a link

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Footnotes

[show]

Kentucky's current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators

Mitch McConnell (R)

Rand Paul (R)

Representatives

District 1

James Comer (R)

District 2

Brett Guthrie (R)

District 3

Morgan McGarvey (D)

District 4

Thomas Massie (R)

District 5

Hal Rogers (R)

District 6

Andy Barr (R)

Republican Party (7)

Democratic Party (1)

2025-2026 Elections to the United States Congress

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Election information

Ballot access for major and minor party candidates • List of candidates running for election • List of congressional challengers • Retiring senators • Retiring representatives

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Super PACs/Organizations

American Bridge 21st Century • American Crossroads • American Unity PAC • Campaign for Primary Accountability • Club for Growth Action • Congressional Leadership Fund • Cooperative of American Physicians IE Committee• Crossroads Generation • Ending Spending Action Fund • Endorse Liberty • Fair Share Action • FreedomWorks for America • Government Integrity Fund • House Majority PAC • Independence USA Fund • League of Conservation Voters • Liberty for All PAC • Majority PAC • National Association of Realtors • NEA Advocacy Fund • Now or Never PAC • Planned Parenthood Votes • Ready for Hillary • Republicans for a Prosperous America • Restore America's Voice PAC • SEIU Pea-Federal • Women Vote!

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