The former president did a tele-rally for the Republican primary winner just before Tuesday's vote.
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Trump-backed Carey wins GOP nod in Ohio special election
The former president did a tele-rally for the Republican primary winner just before Tuesday's vote.
Mike Carey has won the Republican primary for a vacant House seat south of Columbus, vaulting to the top of a crowded special election field with support from former President Donald Trump.
Carey’s win affirms Trump’s ability to influence Republican primaries with endorsements even while out of office during the Biden administration. Trump advisers were eyeing the Ohio primary after Susan Wright, another Republican House candidate backed by the former president, lost her own special election for a district in Texas last week.
Carey had 36 percent of the vote to 14 percent for Bob Peterson, in second place, when the Associated Press called the race.
A former coal lobbyist who started his first run for office relatively unknown, Carey played into the former president’s support during his campaign, stating on his website that he would bring back “America first” policies. Carey ran on a fairly conventional Republican platform against congressional Democratic policies on spending, renewable energy, abortion and immigration.
Critically,
Carey also labeled himself an “outsider” — like his most high-profile supporter.
Following the Texas defeat last week, Trump moved aggressively to prevent a second loss in as many weeks. The former president held a last-minute tele-rally for Carey Monday evening, his second such event for the candidate since July 20.
Meanwhile, a pro-Trump PAC spent more than $350,000 on digital campaign ads in just the last week. That sum was more than most of the candidates, Carey included, spent on their own campaigns by mid-July, when their last campaign spending disclosures before the primary were due.
However, Carey faced some obstacles, including attacks from
several conservative PACs that poured hundreds of thousands of dollars into the campaign. With the special primary happening in the middle of summer, low turnout was expected, adding a big element of uncertainty to the race to go with the crowded, conservative field.
Former state Rep. Ron Hood, one of Carey’s Republican rivals, had support from Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul and outside groups affiliated with the libertarian-aligned senator. And former Republican Rep. Steve Stivers, who previously held the seat, spent heavily from his old campaign account to boost GOP state Rep. Jeff LaRe.
