Other Republicans who voted to impeach Trump are in better shape than Cheney. Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-Wash.) has also drawn a Trump-backed challenger, political neophyte Joe Kent. Despite raising more than $1.3 million, Kent has not cleared the field either, with four other Republicans challenging Herrera Beutler. Washington does not have party primaries; instead, the top two candidates, regardless of party affiliation, will advance to the general election. A recent poll from the Trafalgar Group showed a Democrat leading the pack, with Kent and Herrera Beutler closely bunched for second. With $1.6 million in the bank and the state’s election allowing her to garner primary votes from non-Republicans, Herrera Beutler could easily prevail.
Reps. Dan Newhouse (Wash.) and Peter Meijer (Mich.) are two other Republicans who voted for impeachment and look well placed to turn back Trump-backed challengers. Newhouse will benefit from Washington’s top-two primary law as well, and Trump only recently endorsed a Newhouse opponent — Loren Culp, the Republican nominee for Washington governor in 2020. Culp’s congressional campaign had been foundering before Trump got in; he only had $30,000 on hand to start the year.
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