As votes continue to be counted in Virginia’s 5th District GOP congressional primary race, punches and barbs are still being thrown between Republican candidates John McGuire and Rep. Bob Goodwho ran for re-election.
Good, the incumbent, was first elected in 2020, and hopes to fend off a challenge from McGuire, a Navy SEAL who has the support of former President Donald Trumpbut the results of the Virginia Department of Elections show Good behind McGuire by 330 votes.
Speaking to Steve Bannon in the War Room podcast on Friday, Good cast doubt on the canvassing process, saying that the team was not informed about the counting process in one district that started two hours early.
The congressman also promised a “full recount” and investigative process and said he has a large team of lawyers.
“We are going to pursue every suspicion of malfeasance, we are investigating and we will have some extra time to do it during the recount process,” he said.
According to the Virginia Department of Elections, the canvassing process will continue until Tuesday, June 25 and the State Board of Elections will certify the results on July 2.
Candidates then have until July 12 to submit a recount petition.
Although the race remains too close to call, McGuire took a victory lap on X, formerly known as Twitter just hours after polls closed on Tuesday.
“Thank you to my family, thank you to everyone who helped me in this campaign, thank you to the people who encouraged and supported me, and thank you to Donald J. Trump for believing in me. count, but it is clear that all roads end with victory, ” he said.
The race between Good and McGuire has been one of the most contentious primaries so far in the 2024 cycle. new districts are used.
The GOP race for Virginia’s reliably red Fifth Congressional District has proven to be a deep internal struggle for Republicans who give it external power.
“Bob Good has done more to destroy and divide the Republican Party than the Democrats,” Nebraska GOP congressman Don Bacon posted on social media last tuesday night.
Good has endorsed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the presidential race – before returning to former president Trump’s side. And last year, Good was in eight House Republicans who joined the Democrats to beat Kevin McCarthy as a speaker.
While there are other Republicans running for re-election who have done at least one of those two things, Good has done both, angering colleagues in Washington and alienating Trump at the same time, making his chances of winning another term even more difficult. . . The challenge was further emphasized when Trump endorsed McGuire in the primary and took steps to hold a televised rally for Good’s challenger on the eve of the contest.
The stakes for Good are also stark given his current role as chairman of the House Freedom Caucus. The right wing of House Republicans has often been a problem for the GOP since the party won a narrow majority in the mid-terms of 2022. A loss by Good could complicate the group’s influence in Washington moving forward.
“This fight, as you know, is bigger than me and my opponent, bigger than Virginia’s Fifth District,” Good said at an event hosted by Trump ally Steve Bannon on Thursday. “This is not just a template, as you say, for the election on November 5 … but the swamp against the Freedom Caucus, are we going to allow this seat to be bought by McCarthy’s revenge tour?”
