North Carolina Republican Congressman Madison Cawthorn lost his bid to renew his title last night.
The youngest congressman in America, 26-year-old Cawthorn was defeated in the party primary election in his rural North Carolina district by a slim margin of only about 1,500 votes.
His fanbase saw him as a fresh-faced outsider to give voice to both America’s young and old who are fed up with “wokeism.”
But he had many critics. Many saw him as a shameless opportunist more interested in personal branding than public service.
He attracted a lot of attention on a national and even international level in his two years as Congressman He had a firm claim to be the face of young conservatives in America.
Seven challengers rose to the occasion for his seat in the primary, which was won by Chuck Edwards, a state senator.
Cawthron’s campaign was plagued by plenty of issues. In the months leading up to the primary, he was charged twice with carrying a weapon to an airport, and has racked up a collection of traffic transgressions including speeding, driving with expired tags, and driving on a revoked license, with court dates looming in May and June.
But what may have drew the ire of the GOP the most was claiming he had been invited to orgies by Republican colleagues.
He made comments about “the sexual perversion” in Washington on a podcast, later saying they were exaggerated. The comments drew public disapproval, and the disavowal of Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy alongside other Republican leaders.
Voters and the bigwigs in his party were not amused. Neither, apparently, was his biggest backer Donald Trump, who was said by his inner circle to be wary of the acolyte. However, a day before the primary, Trump said that Cawthorn made foolish mistakes but that he did not believe he’d make them again. The comment from Trump was not enough to take him over the finish line for the primary seat though.
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