A Republican congresswoman who voted for Donald Trump’s impeachment has conceded a hard-fought primary battle to a challenger endorsed by the former president.
“Ever since I was first elected to this seat I have done my very best to serve my home region and our country,” Jaime Herrera Beutler said in a statment released to the media on Tuesday afternoon.
“Though my campaign came up short this time, I’m proud of all we’ve accomplished together for the place where I was raised and still call home.”
Ms Herrera Beutler was one of ten Republicans in the House who who backed impeaching Mr Trump for his role in the Jan 6 riots, and establishing a committee to investigate what happened that day, and the events leading up to them.
Mr Trump vowed to oust all of them, and backed hardline challengers to those who did not stand down from politics.
In Washington’s third congressional district, Mr Trump backed Joe Kent, a former green beret, who served multiple tours and whose wife was killed by an Isis bomb in Syria.
The race had not been officially called by the Associated Press, whose decision-making is usually followed by other media in US election, but Ms Herrera Beutler’s statment came after more results were announced on Tuesday showing Mr Kent’s lead ahead her had been trimmed slightly, but that he still was ahead of her by 928 votes, after a surge on Monday evening.
It was reckoned there were about just 3,000 votes left to be counted. If the things proceed as they appear set to, Mr Kent will proceed for a showdown in November againt Democrat Marie Perez, who came first in the open primary.
Ms Perez secured 67,674 votes to Mr Kent’s 49,515 and Ms Herrera Beutler’s 48,587. Democrats last won the third congressional district, which covers southwest Washington, in 2008.
Ms Herrera Beutler did not mention Mr Kent in her statement. Yet she appeared to refer to the events of Jan 6 2021, when hundreds of supporters of Mr Trump stormed the US Capitol in an attemt to stop Joe Biden’s victory being certified.
“I’m proud that I always told the truth, stuck to my principles, and did what I knew to be best for our country,” she said.
There was no immediate comment from Mr Kent. Rather, he tweeted several articles about the concession.
More follows....
