Sixteen Republican candidates backed by former President Donald J. Trump enjoyed sweeping election wins in California, Iowa, Mississippi, Montana, New Jersey, and South Dakota Tuesday night, putting Trump’s endorsement record at 116-7 in 2022.
California
All California candidates who received Trump’s nod earned nominations for the general election Tuesday, including House Minority Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R), who was vying for the nomination in the state’s 20th Congressional District and earned Trump’s backing on Sunday.
“Congressman Kevin McCarthy is an outstanding representative for the people of California and a strong and fearless leader of the House Republican Conference,” the former president said, as Breitbart News reported.
“Kevin McCarthy has my Complete and Total Endorsement for California’s 20th Congressional District!” he stated.
Per the AP’s election results referenced by the New York Times, the rest of the conservatives in the Golden State who secured nominations Tuesday include:
- Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R) – Nominee for the First Congressional District
- Assemblyman Kevin Kiley (R) – Nominee for the Third Congressional District
- Rep. Tom McClintock (R) – Nominee for the Fifth Congressional District
- Rep. Jay Obernolte (R) – Nominee for the 23rd Congressional District
- Rep. Ken Calvert (R) – Nominee for the 41st Congressional District
- Rep. Darrel Issa (R) – Nominee for the 48th Congressional District
In addition to the candidates who took home nominations Tuesday, former California Assemblywoman Connie Conway (R) won a special election to finish former Republican Rep. Devin Nunes’s term in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Iowa
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R) handily beat his challenger Jim Carlin (R) in Tuesday’s primary for the Republican Senate nomination. Grassley has held his seat in the Senate since 1981 and will vie for an eighth term in the general election against Democratic nominee Michael Franken.
Trump-backed candidates Gov. Kim Reynolds (R), Rep. Ashley Hinson (R), and Rep. Randy Feenstra (R) all officially earned their respective nominations Tuesday night. Hinson, who currently serves the First Congressional District, is running in the Second Congressional District as the state was recently redistricted. Feenstra is running in the Fourth Congressional District.
Montana
The race for Montana’s Republican nomination in the First Congressional District remains undecided. However, the Trump-backed candidate Ryan Zinke (R) maintains a narrow lead over Al Olszewski (R), with 86 percent of the vote counted. Zinke served as the U.S. secretary of the interior for a time in the Trump Administration,
Rep. Matt Rosendale (R) took home the Republican nomination for Montana’s Second Congressional District, beating out three primary challengers in a convincing fashion.
Mississippi, New Jersey, and South Dakota
Rep. Trent Kelly (R), who procured Trump’s nod, won the Republican nomination for Mississippi’s First Congressional District on Tuesday night, pummeling his challenger Mark Strauss. Kelly and Democratic nominee Diane Black will face off in the general election for the Congressional seat.
In New Jersey, Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R) will be the Republican nominee for the Second Congressional District, beating out challengers John Barker (R) and Sean Pignatelli (R). Van Drew, a former Democrat, officially announced his switch to the Republican Party and his support of Trump in 2019, as Breitbart News reported.
“I believe that this is just a better fit for me,” he said at the time and told Trump that “You have my undying support, and always.”
South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R) secured the nomination for her reelection Tuesday, thumping her challenger Steven Haugaard so convincingly that the Associated Press called the race precisely 20 minutes after polls closed. Noem will face Democratic candidate Jamie Smith in the general election, who ran unopposed in the Democratic Primary.
“Kristi Noem has done a great job as Governor of South Dakota,” Trump said in his February endorsement of Noem, Breitbart News reported. “She is strong on Borders, the Second Amendment, preserving land and Energy Dominance, Medical Freedom, and kept South Dakota open during COVID. She fully supports our great Law Enforcement, Military, our wonderful Vets — and is a fighter for the incredible people of South Dakota.”
Then-President Donald Trump speaks during a fundraiser for then-Republican gubernatorial hopeful Kristi Noem in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, on Friday, September 7, 2018. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
Trump endorsed candidates entered the evening 100-7 in Republican primary races following May 24’s elections in Georgia, Alabama, Arkansas, and the Texas runoff, as well as Dr. Mehmet Oz’s victory in Pennsylvania’s Republican Senate primary win on June 3 after David McCormick conceded the race. The 45th president was perfect in picking candidates in Alabama, Texas, and Arkansas but ran into trouble in Georgia, where four who earned his nod fell short of winning their nominations.
During the May 17 primaries, 23 Trump-endorsed candidates were victorious in their races in North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, and Idaho, while only 2 lost. In the week prior, three candidates who earned the 45th President’s backing won races in West Virginia and Nebraska, but the Nebraska gubernatorial race marked the first instance where a Trump-endorsed candidate lost a race. Prior to that point, Trump-backed candidates were on fire, going 55-0 in endorsements between the Ohio and Indiana primaries on May 3 and Texas primaries on March 1, where all 33 candidates either won their races or forced runoffs.
Perhaps the most notable victory was J.D. Vance’s win in Ohio’s Republican Senate Primary as he rode the momentum from a late Trump endorsement to victory.
Trump spokesman Taylor Budowich told Breitbart News:
JD Vance put in tremendous work and has immense political talent—which put him in the position to earn the support of President Trump—but it was the endorsement of President Donald J. Trump that took a candidate who many insiders said was in 4th and at single digits in the polls, and in only two weeks, propelled him into a commanding first place finish.
The 2022 mid-term election primary cycle continues next Tuesday in Maine, Nevada, North Dakota, and South Carolina.