Trump-backed Rep. Madison Cawthorn concedes North Carolina GOP major

Rep. Madison Cawthorn speaks before a rally for former U.S. President Donald Trump at The Farm at 95 on April 9, 2022 in Selma, North Carolina.

Allison Joyce | Getty Photographs

Rep. Madison Cawthorn, the scandal-prone freshman lawmaker backed by former President Donald Trump, conceded defeat in his Republican main election on Tuesday night.

Cawthorn known as state Sen. Chuck Edwards to concede the race, the congressman's spokesman advised reporters. Edwards had been endorsed by U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C.

NBC Information projected Edwards as the primary winner in the state's 11th Congressional District on Tuesday evening. He led the race with greater than 33% of the vote, compared with roughly 32% for Cawthorn.

"Congratulations to @ChuckEdwards4NC on securing the nomination tonight," Cawthorn mentioned in a tweet. "It is time for the NC-11 GOP to rally behind the Republican ticket to defeat the Democrats' nominee this November."

North Carolina voters on Tuesday had already decided who will compete in one in every of this year's vital U.S. Senate races: Rep. Ted Budd will win the Republican Senate major in the race to fill the seat of retiring GOP Sen. Richard Burr, NBC projected.

Budd is backed each by Trump and the influential conservative group Club for Progress. He'll face off in the general election against Cheri Beasley, former chief justice of the North Carolina Supreme Courtroom, who NBC projected would handily clinch the Democratic nomination.

The swing-state contest is one in every of a handful that will determine whether Democrats keep their majority within the Senate cut up 50-50 by social gathering. Vice President Kamala Harris holds a tiebreaking vote for Democrats.

Cawthorn is considered one of 13 U.S. Home members from North Carolina. Now 26 years old, Cawthorn was the youngest member of Congress when he was elected in 2020. His seat, which was beforehand held by ex-Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows, is a secure Republican district.

However, the first-term lawmaker's reelection bid turned one of the state's most-watched primary races, thanks to a wide range of scandals and missteps that spurred harsh criticism — even from some Republicans.

The controversies swirling around Cawthorn embrace: making claims about different lawmakers doing illicit medication and alluring him to orgies; driving with a revoked license; bringing a loaded handgun to an airport; being eyed by ethics watchdogs over suspicions about possible insider buying and selling associated to a meme cryptocurrency; calling Ukraine's president a "thug" amid an invasion by Russia; and others.

Tillis came out swinging in opposition to Cawthorn. He endorsed Edwards, a top rival in the GOP major. A political motion committee affiliated with Tillis reportedly spent more than $300,000 on ads attacking Cawthorn. And after the watchdogs raised issues of possible insider trading, Tillis openly known as for a congressional ethics investigation into Cawthorn.

Trump, in the meantime, defended Cawthorn in a social media put up over the weekend.

"Just lately, he made some silly mistakes, which I don't imagine he'll make again," Trump mentioned of Cawthorn, including, "Let's give Madison a second chance!"

Requested by NBC Information about Trump's put up, Tillis replied, "Technically, that is the sixth or seventh probability."

"He hasn't realized from a mistake he's made over the last year," the senator mentioned of Cawthorn.