Republican voters in Virginia’s 5th Congressional District don’t yet know whether House Freedom Caucus Chairman Bob Good was on his way to his fifth term or whether his opponent, state Sen. John McGuire, a former Navy SEAL, won the GOP primary on Tuesday, a race that highlighted a division within the Trump faction of the GOP.
With 96% of the votes counted, McGuire leads with 31,402 votes to Good’s 31,057, a tiny margin of 0.4%, just 345 votes. All Virginia state offices are closed Wednesday, the Juneteenth holiday, so remaining votes will be counted Thursday.
The winner of the Republican primary will almost certainly win the general election in the Southside Virginia district. The nonpartisan election tracker Cook Political Report calls the race “solid Republican.”
Good lost the support of the two Republicans aligned with Kevin McCarthy following his vote for oust McCarthy as president and former president Donald Trump, after supporting the former president’s primary opponent, the governor of Florida. Ron DeSantis.
Good approved later Asset After DeSantis dropped out, but not soon enough for Trump, who posted on Truth Social: “It was too late” — and then endorsed his primary challenger.
“Bob Good is BAD FOR VIRGINIA AND BAD FOR THE UNITED STATES,” Trump wrote, adding, “I just want to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN, and the person who can most help me do that is Navy Seal and highly respected state legislator John. McGuire, a true American hero.
During a conference call for McGuire Monday night, Trump said, “If he’s re-elected, Bob Good will stab Virginia in the back, much like he did to me.” »
McGuire also made a strong showing in ads for his loyalty to Trump. In a recent ad, McGuire holds a rifle while a narrator says, “Trump doesn’t need another traitor in Congress. He needs John McGuire – a straight shooter who always has his six.”
McGuire not only has the support of the former president, but he has also been endorsed by other Trump-aligned Republicans, including Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene and Freedom Caucus member Warren Davidson. Some of Good’s Republican colleagues in Washington came to the district to support McGuire, including Republican Rep. Jen Keggans of Virginia, who even helped raise money for Good’s challenger.
But Good still has the support of many congressional Republicans like Reps. Matt Gaetz and Byron Donald of Florida and Virginia Rep. Ben Cline.
Outside groups also poured money into this race to boost Good’s reelection, while others — including some with ties to McCarthy — spent millions trying to unseat him. McGuire also trailed Good, by $1.2 million to $1.1 million, according to May federal election filings.
This will be McCarthy’s second attempt to overturn one of the propositions that voted to oust him. He failed to dislodge Rep. Nancy Macé, who won his primary last week.