Former President Donald Trump’s endorsees were on ballots in five Aug. 2 Republican primaries, scoring wins in Arizona and Michigan, dual defeats in Washington state, and a draw, of sorts, in Missouri.
According to a Ballotpedia analysis of the 2022 primary cycle through Aug. 2, 12 of 15 Trump-endorsed gubernatorial candidates have won Republican primaries with four pending; 99 of 104 U.S. House Trump endorsees have advanced with more than 20 pending; and 15 of 16 U.S. Senate candidates with his endorsment have advanced with four pending.
The vast majority are incumbents who faced no or nominal primary challenges.
Of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump, four have retired, three survived primary challenges by Trump-backed candidates, two lost their seats to America First inter-party rivals, and one—Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.)—awaits her fate in Wyoming’s Aug. 16 Republican primary.
Looking ahead, Trump has made several notable endorsements in Wisconsin’s Aug. 9 Republican primaries, including Tim Michels for governor, incumbent Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), and Derrick van Orden in the Republican primary for the state’s 3rd Congressional District.
Trump has also issued several prominent endorsements in Aug. 16 primaries.
Most notably: Kelly Tshibaka in her Alaska campaign against moderate three-term incumbent Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and the long-anticipated showdown in Wyoming’s Republican congressional district primary between Harriet Hageman and Cheney, co-chair of the House January 6 Investigation Committee and an avowed, vocal antagonizer of the former president.
Here’s a roundup of how key Trump-endorsed candidates fared in the Aug. 2 primaries:
Arizona Secretary of State
State Rep. Mark Finchem defeated his closest rival, Beau Lane, scoring 38 percent of the vote. Lane received 26 percent with two other hopefuls drawing at least 16 percent in a crowded field.
Finchem has made election integrity a cornerstone of his campaign following the disputed 2020 election and the forensic audit in Maricopa County.
“At the end of the day, I stand for the rule of law, that nobody has their thumb on the scale of election integrity and election justice,” Finchem told The Epoch Times.
“Mark was willing to say what few others had the courage to say,” Trump said, complimenting his “incredibly powerful stance on the massive voter fraud.”
Finchem will face former Maricopa County Recorder Adrian Fontes, a Democrat, in the general election on Nov. 8. Fontes defeated Reginald Bolding 53 percent to 47 percent to win his party’s nomination.
By John Haughey
