Former NFL kicker Jay Feely just handed Republicans a Trump-backed nominee in one of the most competitive House races in the country.
Feely won the GOP primary for Arizona’s 1st Congressional District Tuesday night, defeating former state lawmaker Joseph Chaplik and businessman John Trobough. The district — covering northeastern Maricopa County, Scottsdale, Paradise Valley, and Fountain Hills — is a Phoenix-area battleground both parties need to control the House.
President Trump endorsed Feely in a video message days before the primary, calling him a “true America First conservative” and urging voters to back him in the July 21 election.
“True America First conservative” — President Trump on Jay Feely
The National Republican Congressional Committee placed Feely in its “MAGA Majority” program, aimed at supporting America First candidates in battleground districts.
Feely replaces Rep. David Schweikert, who ran for governor but lost his own primary Tuesday night.
The primary turned personal in its final weeks.
Chaplik accused Feely on X of having “imported Haitians” — a remark Feely described as racist and directed at Haitian men he considers family, according to Axios Phoenix.
Chaplik fired back on X: “This tweet had NOTHING to do with your two family members and everything to do with your history of bringing large numbers of Haitian migrants to NGOs in an attempt to get amnesty here. You have a history of opposing Trump on TPS for Haiti.”
Feely, who has spent years doing nonprofit relief work in Haiti after a devastating 2010 earthquake there, defended his work as humanitarian, not political. He told Axios Phoenix he helped two young Haitian men — a translator he worked with and the translator’s brother — come to the U.S. Feely said he considers them members of his family and has also tried to assist several of their relatives in relocating.
Feely now advances to a general election in one of the most closely watched House races in the country. Republicans are fighting to hold Schweikert’s seat while Democrats look to capitalize on an open race in a district that has remained competitive in recent cycles.
The Democrat candidates for Arizona’s 1st Congressional District include former state lawmaker Amish Shah and former television news anchor Marlene Galán-Woods, the two leading Democrats in the race, along with Rick McCartney and Jonathan Treble.
Trump’s endorsement record in the 2026 primaries remains perfect — every candidate he backed has won.
