Five candidates backed by former President Donald J. Trump won their primary races in Wyoming and Alaska Tuesday night, growing his overall endorsement record to 209-17 in 2022.
Perhaps the biggest win for Trump in this year’s election cycle came Tuesday night when Harriet Hageman thumped incumbent Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) in Wyoming’s Congressional race. Cheney, an impeachment Republican in the House of Representatives and the vice chair of the January 6 Select Committee, did not come close to her challenger in the contest for the At-Large Congressional District.
CASPER, WY – MAY 28: Wyoming candidate for Governor Harriet Hageman walks on stage to introduce former President Donald Trump at a rally on May 28, 2022 in Casper, Wyoming. The rally is being held to support Harriet Hageman, Rep. Liz Cheney’s primary challenger in Wyoming. (Photo by Chet Strange/Getty Images)
With 95 percent reported as of Thursday, Hageman, backed by Trump, secured 113,025 votes (66.3 percent) to Cheney’s 49,316 (28.2 percent), according to the Associated Press election results compiled by the New York Times. Around 30 minutes after the polls closed in Wyoming, Decision Desk HQ and Dave Wasserman of the Cook Report both called the race for Hageman. Following her loss, Cheney seemed to compare herself to the first Republican President Abraham Lincoln, as Breitbart News reported:
The great original champion of our party, Abraham Lincoln, was defeated in elections for the Senate and the House before he won the most important election of all. Lincoln ultimately prevailed. He saved our union and he defined our obligation as Americans for all of history.
Trump had three other endorsements on the line in Wyoming Tuesday, all of which were at the state executive level. State Rep. Chuck Gray secured the nomination for Secretary of State, betting out Tara Nethercott. Wyoming Treasurer Curt Meier advanced to the general election in his renomination bid for Treasurer, while Superintendent of Public Instruction Brian Schoeder came up short in his effort for renomination to challenger Megan Degenfelder.
In Alaska, both Trump-endorsed candidates advanced to general election races.
Kelly Tshibaka, who has Trump’s backing, advanced to the ranked-choice election from the open primary for U.S. Senate. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), who voted to impeach Trump and has the support of Sen Mitch McConnell (R-KY), also advanced. With 82 percent of the vote tabulated as of Thursday morning, Tshibaka garnered 39.8 percent of the response, while Murkowski took 44.2 percent. Two other candidates will also advance from the open primary, though it has not been officially declared who as of yet.
ANCHORAGE, ALASKA – JULY 09: Republican U.S. Senate candidate Kelly Tshibaka (L) pumps her fist as former U.S. President Donald Trump (R) looks on during a “Save America” rally at Alaska Airlines Center on July 09, 2022 in Anchorage, Alaska. Former President Donald Trump held a “Save America” rally in Anchorage where he campaigned with U.S. House candidate former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and U.S. Senate candidate Kelly Tshibaka. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
Tshibaka highlighted the process of the ranked-choice election system in an interview on Sirius XM’s Breitbart News Saturday over the weekend.
“In November, what happens is everyone gets to go in and vote for their top candidate first – if you want, you get to vote for a backup candidate or two back-up candidates or three – so you rank your second, third, and fourth choice,” she explained. “If the candidate that comes in first doesn’t cross the 50% line – get at least half the votes in the election – then the fourth candidate drops off. Their second, third, and fourth place votes get reallocated. The third candidate drops off, their second, third, and fourth place votes get reallocated.”
She also took a swipe at Murkowski.
“She doesn’t tell us the truth. She says one thing here in Alaska and then does the exact opposite in D.C.,” Tshibaka said. “She’ll talk about writing the infrastructure bill with Bernie Sanders, but she won’t tell us that the radical extremists in the Biden administration are piling up all these new regulations on us [in the bill.]”
Sarah Palin advanced to the general election for Alaska’s at-large Congressional District along with Democrat Mary Peltola and Republican Nick Begich. As Alaska’s election system is ranked-choice, one more candidate will advance to the general, and with 82 percent of the vote reported, Tara Sweeney looks to be the favorite for the final spot.
Trump’s 5-1 score in one night puts his overall record in statewide and federal races at 188-12 this election cycle. Such races are comprised of gubernatorial, U.S. Senate, U.S. House, and statewide executive contests. In governor’s races this year, Trump’s record stands at 15-3, while Tshibaka’s advancement grows his U.S. Senate endorsement record to a perfect 19-0. In Congressional races, he has fared very well, with an overall primary record of 136-5.
While Trump has had great success in picking candidates for federal races, the majority of his losses this cycle have come in lower statewide executive and state legislature races. In statewide executive contests, his candidates are 16-4, and in county and state legislature primaries, his record sits at 21-5. Moreover, two of his candidates – former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and Rep. Connie Conway (R-CA) – have taken home a special primary and special election victory, respectively.
The midterm primaries are beginning to wind down as candidates who have advanced prepare for general election races. However, a few primaries remain, including Florida and New York congressional primaries on August 23.
This article has been corrected to reflect that Trump’s endorsement record is 209-17, not 210-17.