The day before Kentucky’s May 19 primary election, U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth made a final pitch to voters on why President Donald Trump’s hand-picked candidate Ed Gallrein is the “no-brainer” choice for Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District.

Speaking to a crowd of around 150 people at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel at the Cincinnati Airport, Hegseth touted Gallrein’s background as a veteran of the Navy SEAL special operations force as the reason he would be successful in Congress.

“President Trump needs reinforcements, and that’s what warfighters do,” Hegseth said. “... Warfighters understand mission. They understand teamwork. They understand loyalty, and they understand that in the middle of a fight, you don’t weaken your own side. You advance to the objective, and that’s what Ed Gallrein understands, because he has lived it.”

The Northern Kentucky’s district will be the nation’s most-watched contest Tuesday and has become the most expensive U.S. House primary race in history, with more than $25 million spent.

Trump has led the crusade to oust the incumbent Republican, Rep. Thomas Massie, who has feuded with the president over policy, the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files and more. Trump endorsed Gallrein in October 2025, and Gallrein entered the race a few days later.

Hegseth criticized Massie’s disagreements with Trump, calling the libertarian-leaning congressman an “obstructionist” who does too much “grandstanding.”

“Thomas Massie’s record speaks for itself too. Too much grandstanding...(too many) years of acting like being difficult is the same thing as being courageous,” Hegseth said. “It’s not. Real courage means stepping up when the mission matters most, when we need that tough vote to beat left-wing lunatic Democrats.”

Hegseth’s appearance at the rally hosted by America First Works, an organization promoting the “America First” movement throughout the country, was his second stop of the day in Kentucky. Earlier, he attended a ceremony in Fort Campbell to award Purple Hearts to 101st Airborne Division Soldiers wounded during a 2003 grenade attack in Kuwait and to administer the oath of enlistment to 190 re-enlistees, the Department of Defense said.

Hegseth’s appearance at the rally though drew some criticism and accusations of violating the Hatch Act.

Under that federal law, executive branch employees, other than the president and vice president, are limited as to what government resources they can use for partisan political activity. Some also brought up concerns that Hegseth’s appearance would break a longstanding tradition of the Defense Secretary avoiding political activities so that the military can maintain an apolitical image.

The Pentagon is pushing back on these allegations though, saying Hegseth attended the Gallrein event in a personal capacity and that no taxpayer dollars were used for the Kentucky visit, according to reporting from The Hill.

Hegseth made that clear at the beginning of his speech.

“I have to say up front, for the lawyers, that I’m here in my personal capacity as a private citizen, a fellow American, and a fellow combat veteran here to support Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein,” Hegseth said.

In supporting Gallrein, Hegseth said Washington, D.C., needs more leaders who are experienced and understand being part of a team. Hegseth also has previous military experience and was commissioned as an infantry officer in the U.S. Army National Guard.

“We already have plenty of talkers in D.C., plenty of consultants, plenty of bureaucrats (and) plenty of career politicians who have never carried a responsibility heavier than a committee hearing,” Hegseth said. “(There’s) not enough men who actually had to make those hard decisions under pressure, not enough leaders who understand the service before self, about being on a team, about leading and about following, and that’s why this race matters. That’s why I’m proud here to stand with Ed Gallrein.”

Gallrein praised Hegseth, saying his work has led the military in the “right direction.”

“We’re restoring standards based on war-fighting, restoring accountability and performance and leadership, restoring deterrence for peace and prosperity, just like President Reagan did,” Gallrein said.

Gallrein added Trump’s leadership has sent a message to the country’s “enemies” — America is done “apologizing for its strength” and putting politics “ahead of national security.”

“Under President Trump, we’re rebuilding fighting strength, and we are returning the principles made our nation the most feared and respected force on earth to maintain peace and prosperity,” Gallrein said.

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