An Oklahoma pastor running for Congress with the full backing of President Donald Trump has admitted to sending inappropriate text messages to a woman who is not his wife, casting a shadow over his campaign just 48 hours before voters head to the polls in the state’s primary election. The Rev. Jackson Lahmeyer, who leads Sheridan Church in Tulsa and founded the organization Pastors for Trump, acknowledged he “crossed a boundary line” after a British tabloid published private messages allegedly exced between him and Caitlin Key, who held the title of Miss Oklahoma USA in 2007.
The timing of the revelation could hardly be more damaging for Lahmeyer’s political ambitions. Running in Oklahoma’s 1st Congressional District against nine other Republican candidates, the 34 year old pastor had positioned himself as a champion of conservative evangelical values and secured high profile endorsements from Trump and several Republican congressional leaders. His political rise began with an unsuccessful 2022 challenge to incumbent U.S. Sen. James Lankford, but his creation of Pastors for Trump helped galvanize evangelical support ahead of the 2024 presidential election and elevated his national profile. He has also worked closely with Roger Stone, a longtime Trump ally known for his hardball political tactics.
According to reports from the Daily Mail, Key worked as a fundraiser for Lahmeyer’s congressional campaign after meeting him in 2022. The outlet published text message threads purportedly from spring 2026 showing flirtatious exces between the two. In one message, Lahmeyer calls Key “very cute,” to which she responds by questioning why he is texting her while attending a party at Mar a Lago. The pastor replies that he likes texting her. In another exce, Key appears to reference his marriage, writing that if he needs to get divorced at some point, that would be acceptable, though not right away. She also suggests that Lahmeyer has romantic feelings for her despite no physical relationship.
Key told the outlet that Lahmeyer’s wife, Kendra, eventually discovered the messages and contacted her directly, accusing her of having an inappropriate relationship with the pastor. In a statement posted to his Facebook page late on June 14, Lahmeyer did not deny the authenticity of the messages but characterized the story as “distorted” and said the matter had already been addressed privately with his wife through prayer and consultation with spiritual advisors. He maintained that the messages were “carefully cherry picked to create an impression that is not accurate” and pointed to the story’s publication just days before the election as evidence of political motivation. Key initially agreed to an interview with local media but subsequently stopped responding to follow up questions.
The scandal has already drawn sharp criticism from at least one of Lahmeyer’s primary opponents. Kim David, a former state legislator also running for the congressional seat, posted on social media that pastors hold a sacred responsibility requiring trust and that Lahmeyer had broken that trust. She described him as “Roger Stone’s handpicked candidate” who lacks the character and judgment necessary to serve in Congress, adding that she would never bring embarrassment to the district. The highlights how the controversy has created an opening for rivals to question not just Lahmeyer’s personal conduct but also his fitness for office and the authenticity of his religious leadership.
Despite the damaging revelations, President Trump doubled down on his support for the embattled pastor. In a post on Truth Social on June 15, Trump reaffirmed his endorsement of Lahmeyer, though the full content of his statement was not immediately available. The president’s willingness to stand by his chosen candidate suggests that Trump remains confident in Lahmeyer’s ability to weather the scandal, or at minimum is unwilling to reverse course so close to election day. Whether Oklahoma Republican primary voters will be as forgiving remains to be seen. With the primary scheduled for June 17, voters will have just hours to digest the allegations and Lahmeyer’s admission before making their choice. The outcome will serve as a test of whether personal moral failings still carry significant weight with evangelical voters in an era when political loyalty often trumps traditional concerns about character, or whether some boundaries remain uncrossable even in the most partisan political environment.
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