Washington DC: A Republican who was backed by Donald Trump at the last minute prevailed on Tuesday in an Alabama Senate runoff. But in neighboring Georgia, the former president’s losing streak deepened. Meanwhile, moderate Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser won her Democratic primary, offering a fresh warning to progressives.
Loyalty runs one way
Rep. Mo Brooks, one of the former president’s most ardent defenders in Congress, felt the sting of that reminder on Tuesday when he lost a runoff for the GOP nomination for a U.S. Senate seat from Alabama. Trump initially backed Brooks but rescinded that endorsement after the campaign got off to a lackluster start.
Then, less than two weeks before the runoff, Trump backed Katie Britt, a candidate more oriented toward the GOP establishment but someone whose victory seemed more assured. Britt is now the prohibitive favorite in the deep-red state to succeed retiring Sen. Richard Shelby, for whom she formerly worked.
Trump went down in Georgia
Trump extended his losing streak in Georgia on Tuesday, after two U.S. House candidates he endorsed were blown out in runoff primary elections that represented a continuation of the drubbing he received in the state last month. Georgia has been a fixation of Trump’s ever since he lost the 2020 election and mounted a pressure campaign to get Republican leaders in the state to overturn the results.
Vernon Jones, a former liberal Democrat turned MAGA warrior, was crushed by trucking company owner Mike Collins, while Jake Evans also lost in dramatic fashion to emergency room physician Rich McCormick. Meanwhile, in the other Atlanta area runoff, McCormick, the doctor, easily beat Trump-backed Jake Evans.
Warning for progressives
In Washington, Bowser fended off a progressive rival in the city’s Democratic primary, overcoming a tough primary campaign that focused on rising crime.
Her victory virtually guarantees that she will win a third consecutive term as mayor in the heavily Democratic city. The results could also be interpreted as the latest warning to progressives that voters in the party’s own base are wary of their criminal justice policies at a time of rising anxiety about public safety
Bowser defeated At-large Councilmember Robert White, who harshly criticized her response to spiraling violent crime rates, and Councilmember Trayon White, who represents Ward 8, the poorest and most crime-ridden area in the district.
