Trump unifies Okla.’s 1st District behind Mark Tedford after pre-election endorsement shift
OAN Staff Addie Davis and Sophia Flores
4:18 PM – Wednesday, June 17, 2026
President Donald Trump has announced his total endorsement of Mark Tedford for Oklahoma’s 1st Congressional District, a decisive pivot that reshaped the race just one day after the primary election.
The Wednesday endorsement came moments before the president’s previous pick, Pastor Jackson Lahmeyer, officially suspended his campaign—despite Trump reiterating his support for the candidate only days earlier.
“Mark is Pro Trump and MAGA all the way! A Proven Leader, Mark has served his Community as a Highly Respected State Legislator and Businessman, prior to running for Congress,” the president said in a Wednesday Truth Social post.
Trump had previously endorsed Lahmeyer ahead of Tuesday’s crowded Republican primary. However, after the primary results initially signaled an August runoff between the two frontrunners, Trump pulled his endorsement, instead switching to Tedford, effectively ending the runoff before it could begin.
“I greatly appreciate Jackson Lahmeyer’s hard work under difficult circumstances — He has always been with me, and I will always be with him,” Trump said in his post following the primary. “But when it comes to the current Congressional race for Oklahoma’s 1st Congressional District, I will be supporting America First Patriot, Mark Tedford.”
Following Trump’s post, Lahmeyer announced the suspension of his campaign on social media.
“After prayerful consideration with my wife, Kendra, and my team over the last twenty four hours, I’ve made the difficult decision to suspend my campaign for Congress,” Lahmeyer said on X before deleting his account. “I do not want to be a distraction to my family, my church, and the great people of Oklahoma’s 1st Congressional District, who deserve a strong conservative voice representing them in Washington.”
Lahmeyer’s exit comes after the Daily Mail released an article alleging that the pastor sent inappropriate, romantic text messages to a former campaign staffer.
The father of five acknowledged crossing a boundary in a statement posted Sunday to X, while characterizing the tabloid’s report as a distorted depiction of the communications.
“This matter was already dealt with privately between me and my wife, Kendra, through counsel and prayer with God and spiritual advisors,” Lahmeyer wrote on X Sunday. “I own crossing a boundary line through text messaging. I also ended all communication. The British Tabloid tried to paint me out in a way which is not the case.”
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