TALLAHASSEE, Florida — Rep. Matt Gaetz crushed his Republican major opponent on Tuesday, including an enormous loss to former Home Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s revenge tour towards these within the GOP that ousted him from his management submit final October.
Gaetz, who stays beneath investigation by the Home Ethics Committee, had been hammered in tremendous PAC advertisements that centered on allegations of unlawful drug use and that he paid to have intercourse with a 17-year-old lady, a cost that Gaetz has denied. The Division of Justice, which seemed into the allegations, declined to press expenses.
However Gaetz, a long-time and vocal ally of former President Donald Trump, nonetheless simply defeated Navy veteran Aaron Dimmock and is now on tempo to win his fifth time period representing northwest Florida. Gaetz will face Democrat Homosexual Valimont in November, however the district leans closely Republican.
Within the closing days earlier than the first, Gaetz campaigned with an extended line of conservative Republicans throughout his district together with Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), Reps. Chip Roy (R-Texas) and Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.). Gaetz and his allies known as on native Republicans to point out up in drive to “ship a message” to McCarthy and different D.C. Republicans.
McCarthy had endorsed Dimmock and the tremendous PAC that went after Gaetz had ties to these in McCarthy’s orbit.
Even on major day, the Gaetz marketing campaign blasted out a fundraising e-mail that learn “I need to make a STATEMENT. I need to win in a LANDSLIDE VICTORY to show to Kevin McCarthy that irrespective of how a lot cash he sinks into defeating me, it can NEVER be price it.”
Gaetz is the son of a former state Senate president who began out as a legislator earlier than making the soar to Congress in 2016. Throughout his time in workplace, his theatrics and antics as a brash firebrand drew loads of consideration. He’s seen as a possible GOP candidate for governor in 2026 when Gov. Ron DeSantis might be pressured to step down on account of time period limits.
