Rep. Liz Cheney was defeated Tuesday night in the Republican primary for Wyoming’s at-large Congressional District. Her loss means only two of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach former President Donald Trump over the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol will be on the ballot in November.
Of the ten, four lost primaries, four decided not to run for reelection and two survived.
Here’s a breakdown of each of them:
Liz Cheney, Wyoming
Although both were elected in 2016 and were once allies, Cheney became of Trump’s fiercest critics after the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. In the months after the attack, Cheney was censured by the Wyoming Republican Party and was removed from her position as the third-highest ranking Republican in the House.
But Cheney remained defiant, and she was one of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s picks for the House committee investigating the attack, becoming the vice chair.
Trump backed Harriet Hageman to take on Cheney in the primary. Hageman had been a critic and backed Sen. Ted Cruz in the 2016 presidential primary.
As she sank in the polls in her home state, Cheney continued her high-profile fight against Trump. She was one of the leaders of the House Jan. 6 committee public hearings, and she told CBS News’ Robert Costa after she voted Tuesday that the primary is “certainly the beginning of a battle that is going to continue to go on. And as a country, we’re facing a moment where our democracy really is under attack and under threat.”
In her concession speech, Cheney said, “I have said since Jan. 6, that I will do whatever it takes to ensure Donald Trump is never again anywhere near the Oval Office, and I mean it.”
Peter Meijer, Michigan
In Michigan, CBS News projected that Meijer, a freshman, was defeated by Trump-backed John Gibbs. Meijer, whose seat used to belong to Justin Amash, has been vocal in his criticism of the former president.
Meijer received 48.3% of the vote to Gibbs’ 51.7%.
On Aug. 2, Meijer said in a statement that he was “proud to have remained true to my principles, even when doing so came at a significant political cost.”
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee produced ads supporting Gibbs, a move lambasted by some Democrats given Gibbs’ questioning of the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election despite the absence of evidence of widespread fraud.
“I’m disgusted that hard-earned money intended to support Democrats is being used to boost Trump-endorsed candidates, particularly the far-right opponent of one of the most honorable Republicans in Congress, @RepMeijer,” Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips tweeted last week. “Another reason to reform our broken campaign finance system.”
Some Democratic strategists feel far-right Trump supporters will be easier to defeat in November than more traditional Republicans.
Jaime Herrera Beutler, Washington
CBS News projected that Beutler did not advance out of Washington’s top-two primary system. Trump-backed Republican Joe Kent, who has repeated Trump’s falsehoods about the 2020 election, advanced, along with Democrat Marie Gluesenkamp Perez.
Gluesenkamp Perez received 31% of the vote, with Kent receiving 22.8% and Herrera Beutler following with 22.3%.
Herrera Beutler issued a statement conceding one week after the election. She thanked the district for its support but did not mention Trump by name.
Dan Newhouse, Washington
CBS News projected that Rep. Newhouse advanced to the general election in the Republican primary for Washington’s 4th District, along with Democrat Doug White.
In the eight-person open primary, there were seven Republicans and one Democrat. Newhouse was top vote-getter, receiving 25.5% of the vote, followed by White, who received 25.1% of the vote.
Although Newhouse had been the Washington vice chair of Trump’s 2020 campaign, Trump backed Lorena Culp in the primary. Culp, the 2020 Republican nominee for Washington governor, came in third with 21.6% of the vote.
Tom Rice, South Carolina
In the June 15 primary, Rice lost to a Trump-backed challenger, Russell Fry. Fry got 51.1% of the vote to Rice’s 24.6%.
Rice had vehemently defended his impeachment vote, telling Politico recently that “I think that was one of the worst things, if not the worst, that a president has ever done in terms of attacking the Constitution and separation of powers.”
Trump issued a celebratory statement after Fry’s victory, saying the “biggest News of the evening so far is that Russell Fry beat Impeach Master Tom Rice with a Vote of more than 51%, therefore WINNING OUTRIGHT with no need for a run-off.”
David Valadao, California
In California’s top-two vote-getter system, Valadao and Democrat Rudy Salas advanced to the general election in November. There were two other Republicans on the ballot, but Trump did not endorse either of them.
Salas was the top vote-getter, receiving 42.5% of the vote, followed by Valadao, who got 25.6%. Chris Mathys attracted 23.4% and Adam Medeiros received 5.8%.
Adam Kinzinger, Illinois
Kinzinger, who is on the House Jan. 6 committee with Cheney, opted not to run for reelection after redistricting put him and fellow Republican Darin LaHood in the same district.
“I cannot focus on both a reelection to Congress and a broader fight nationwide. I want to make it clear, this isn’t the end of my political future, but rather the beginning,” Kinzinger said in announcing his decision in Oct. 2021.
Anthony Gonzalez, Ohio
Gonzalez, who was first elected in 2018, announced in Sept. 2021 that he would not be running for reelection, becoming the first of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump to decide to leave Congress.
“While my desire to build a fuller family life is at the heart of my decision, it is also true that the current state of our politics, especially many of the toxic dynamics inside our own party, is a significant factor in my decision,” he said in announcing his decision.
Trump had already backed former aide Max Miller in the race. Miller defeated three other Republicans to win the primary on May 3.
Fred Upton, Michigan
Upton announced in April that he would not run for reelection after redistricting put him in the same district as fellow Republican Congressman Bill Huizenga. Upton had been in Congress since 1993.
In a speech on the House floor, Upton highlighted his work reaching across the aisle.
“I’ve worked [with] seven administrations, seven House speakers. None of them would call me a rubber stamp,” he said. “If it’s good policy for Michigan, it’s good enough for all of us.”
In announcing his decision to vote for Trump’s second impeachment, Upton said Congress “must hold President Trump to account and send the clear message that our country cannot and will not tolerate any effort by any President to impede the peaceful transfer of power from one President to the next.”
Months after the impeachment vote, Upton bucked Republican leadership and voted for President Biden’s infrastructure bill.
Joel Katko, New York
Katko, who represented upstate New York since 2015, ran ahead of Trump by 20 points in his district in the 2020 election. But he announced in Jan. that he would not be seeking reelection.
“My conscience, principles, and commitment to do what’s right have guided every decision I’ve made as a Member of Congress, and they guide my decision today,” Katko said in a statement, adding that he wanted to spend more time with his family after the recent deaths of his parents.
Before his vote to impeach Trump in January 2021, Katko said Trump “encouraged this insurrection, both on social media ahead of January 6, and in his speech that day … to allow the president of the United States to incite this attack without consequence is a direct threat to the future of our democracy.”
Katko also worked with House Democrats to create a bipartisan commission to investigate the attack, although that plan was eventually squashed by House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy.
– Aaron Navarro contributed to this report.
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