The Continental Times

Alex Culper

As the United States stands on the horizon of her 250th anniversary of independence from Great Britain, another defining battle is brewing for the future of America.

Make America Great Again (MAGA) and America First candidates have been fighting a fierce civil war for control of the Republican Party. The victor won’t just be in the driver’s seat of Republican politics—but possibly the nation. The battleground? The 2026 midterms.

MAGA candidates have weaponized Trump’s enduring influence over the party, using it to convince voters that MAGA will carry his policies forward after he leaves office in 2028. At the time of publishing, candidates backed by the President have seen overwhelming success in the 2026 primaries. Only one Trump endorsee has been defeated so far: Rep. Randy Feenstra, who lost Iowa’s Republican gubernatorial primary to businessman Zach Lahn. Prior to that sole loss, Trump-backed candidates had racked up 14 straight victories.

Conversely, America First candidates have crumbled under the influence of the sitting president. The most notable loss came with the defeat of Rep. Thomas Massie—who has held Kentucky’s 4th Congressional seat since 2012 and won his past three primaries with at least 75% of the vote—against Ed Gallrein, a former Navy SEAL, in the most expensive House primary in U.S. history. This comes just months after fellow America First Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene retired following sharp criticism from President Trump.

Massie had repeatedly led Republican opposition to the President on several critical fronts—dissenting on the ‘Big, Beautiful Bill,’ spearheading the push to release the Epstein files along with Green, and opposing the military operation against Iran.

Looking solely at election results might suggest that ‘America First’ candidates pose no threat to the current Republican establishment. Voter demographics—particularly age—tell a different story. Particularly looking at polls from KY’s 4th Congressional District prior to the GOP House Primary, Massie led with people in the age groups of 18-64, with a heavy lead in the 18-29 age group at 78.5%.

Source: Big Date Poll ‘Republican Primary Poll for Kentucky House District 4’

Gallrein led with the 65+ crowd, polling at 65%. The former Navy Seal, who received $18 million of the total $32.6 million spent in advertising, was able to take the lead by taking home 54.9% of the total votes in the GOP Primary.

Beyond voting trends, the rising popularity of internet personalities like Tucker Carlson, Candace Owens, and Nick Fuentes show that young conservative audiences are growing more distrustful of the current Republican establishment.

Tucker, previously a renowned Trump supporter, has routinely been criticizing the President as of late. As U.S.-Iran tensions have escalated, Trump has lost the support of many figures who had previously identified with the MAGA movement.

With the tragic death of a key figure in the MAGA and Young Republican movement in Charlie Kirk, the next generation of conservatives have been seeking a replacement in leadership. While the future for the Republican Party is still up in the air, the recent rise of a controversial figure like Fuentes suggests some are flocking to a more radical movement.

As America’s semiquincentennial approaches, we at Continental Times would like to take this time to look back on the history of ‘America First’ politics, the conflicts it has had with the modern Republican Party, and how Republican politics have evolved since the party’s founding in 1854. Our objective is to determine what problems are affecting the young men and women of this nation most, to study the lessons learned through 250 years of history, and to develop solutions that will stand until America’s quincentennial and beyond.

Leading up to America’s celebration of her independence on July 4th, and continuing through the rest of 2026, we will be releasing a series of papers exploring this thesis—educational pieces examining historical lessons, followed by discussion pieces proposing solutions for the future of the U.S. Additionally, we will be examining candidates in the 2026 midterm elections who fit our criteria for ‘America First,’ and what their success or failure might mean for the Republican Party’s direction.