Trump-backed candidate drops out after 'crossing boundary' in marriage

A candidate endorsed by President Donald Trump has withdrawn from his congressional race following a texting scandal with a woman who was not his wife.

Jackson Lahmeyer, a Tulsa megachurch pastor and founder of Pastors for Trump, told people he plans to drop out of Oklahoma's 1st Congressional District Republican primary, NOTUS reporter Reese Gorman reported, citing two sources. The sources cautioned he could still change his mind.

The reported withdrawal would come just one day after Lahmeyer advanced to an August runoff against state Rep. Mark Tedford, a Republican, having earned 26% of the vote in an 11-candidate field.

The race was thrown into chaos in its final days after the Daily Mail published texts between Lahmeyer and Caitlin Simmons Key, a former campaign fundraiser and former Miss Oklahoma USA. The texts reportedly included expressions of affection and an invitation to his hotel room.

Lahmeyer acknowledged the relationship in a statement posted on social media Sunday.

"This matter was already dealt with privately between me and my wife, Kendra, through counsel and prayer with God and spiritual advisors," he wrote. "I own crossing a boundary line through text messaging."

Key subsequently told the Daily Mail the relationship went further than texts — saying the two had shared physical kisses.

Lahmeyer had received Trump's endorsement ahead of Tuesday's primary, calling himself a "Trump-endorsed warrior" in his election night statement after advancing to the runoff.

"I've made the difficult decision to suspend my campaign for Congress," Lahmeyer wrote in a post on X later on Wednesday. "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."