Primary voters in Idaho, Kentucky, North Carolina, Oregon, and Pennsylvania went to the polls earlier this week. Here are some of the key results.
Perhaps the biggest (and best) news of the night was the defeat of Divider Rep. Madison Cawthorn in NC-11. Cawthorn has had a series of personal scandals lately, but the main problem is that he believes the 2020 election was “rigged,” and has predicted “bloodshed” in the U.S.
Two other Dividers—Reps. Dan Bishop (NC-08) and Scott Perry (PA-10)—are moving on to the general in November. Both believe the 2020 presidential election was rigged and voted against certifying Joe Biden’s win. Perry actively tried to help overturn Pennsylvania’s 2020 election results.
Also moving on to the general are incumbent Reps. Russ Fulcher (ID-01) and Hal Rogers (KY-05) and Sen. Rand Paul (KY). Fulcher and Rogers are election deniers who voted against certifying Biden’s win. Paul believes the 2020 election was stolen, shares COVID-19 disinformation, and defends Vladimir Putin.
Two North Carolina radicals—Sandy Smith (NC-01) and Bo Hines (NC-13)—WON their races. Both spread conspiracies about the 2020 election. Smith has called for the death of those found guilty of “treason” for alleged “fraud.” Hines has been endorsed by Divider Rep. Paul Gosar.
In Pennsylvania, Jim Bognet (PA-08), a Trump-endorsed election denier who fundraises off of polarization and culture wars, WON his race. And perhaps most disturbing of all, Doug Mastriano WON the GOP primary for governor of the Keystone State. Mastriano has campaigned at events promoting QAnon and 9/11 conspiracies. He believes there was widespread fraud in Pennsylvania during the 2020 election and has said the state legislature has the “sole authority” to appoint alternate electors. He was present at the Jan. 6 insurrection.
In more positive news, these radicals LOST: Ammon Bundy and Janice McGeachin (Gov-ID); Greg Frank (KY-04); Mike Adriani (NC-09); Renee Ellmers (NC-13); David Russ (OR-06); Daniel Tooze (OR-40); Kathy Barnette, Carla Sands, and Bobby Jeffries (US Senate-PA); and Teddy Daniels (Lt Gov-PA)
As of this writing, we’re still waiting for results for radicals Jo Rae Perkins (US Senate-OR), a QAnon follower and election denier, and Mehmet Oz (US Senate-PA), a Trump-endorsed candidate who has spread COVID-19 disinformation.
Last but not least, though unopposed in their primaries, Renewer Reps. Matt Cartwright and Susan Wild will be moving on to the general election in PA-08 and PA-07 respectively. Good luck to these principled leaders!
Through its “Rise of American Radicalism” research project, the Renew America Foundation (RAF) — the 501(c)(3) arm of RAM — has identified more than 250 radical candidates running for office this cycle. You can learn more about these candidates using the RAF Extremist Tracker.
