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President Donald Trump is back in the mix, loudly touting a 97% endorsement “success” rate on Truth Social and pointing to a recent South Carolina win as proof his touch still turns races to gold. With only a couple of Trump‑backed contests left on the calendar, the real test is New Hampshire — where his picks could either seal the narrative or leave critics smirking.
Trump’s 97% Claim and the South Carolina Boost
The president posted the 97% graphic and message himself, and his team has been riding that wave. He also showed up in South Carolina and his pick there won a tough runoff. That win matters. An in‑person presidential endorsement still moves voters. For a party that likes winners, those numbers make for good headlines and better fundraising pitches.
New Hampshire: The Final Two Endorsements
Now comes New Hampshire. Mr. Trump has thrown his weight behind former U.S. Senator John E. Sununu in the GOP Senate primary, and Portsmouth businessman Anthony DiLorenzo in the crowded NH‑1 House primary. Local polling shows Sununu with a strong lead among likely Republican voters, and DiLorenzo leading a fragmented field. The NRCC has even added DiLorenzo to its MAGA Majority program, which means money and organization will back him beyond a single social post.
Why This Matters — And What It Doesn’t
Endorsements win primaries. That has always been true. Trump’s list proves he still has sway with GOP voters where it counts: the base. But New England is a different animal in the fall. Polls show Democrats with an edge in matchups against many of the likely GOP nominees. So even if Trump racks up a few more primary wins, the big question is whether those nominees can flip a blue state in November. The endorsement is a starting gun, not a finish line.
The Bottom Line
Call it Midas or call it momentum, but Trump’s endorsement machine is not dead. The 97% boast is part politics and part marketing — useful, accurate enough to brag about, and persuasive to donors and activists. New Hampshire is the closing act of this endorsement run. If Sununu and DiLorenzo win, the president gets to add two more checkmarks to his list and keep the spin cycle humming. If they don’t, the skeptics get to say the emperor has no clothes. Either way, the next few contests will tell us how real the “stronger than ever” claim really is — and whether Republican voters in swing regions will back candidates who can win in November, not just in a primary.
