Trump had endorsed more than a dozen candidates across the midterms in South Carolina, North Dakota and Nevada, with all but one of them coming out on top.
However, as with all of Trump’s endorsements, they come with a caveat.
Many of the candidates, such North Dakota Senator John Hoevan, were the incumbent and already the overwhelming favorite to win their election. Several others, such as Joe Wilson and Jeff Duncan in South Carolina, contested their primaries unopposed.
Where the former president’s influence could be seen was in the GOP primary for South Carolina’s 7th Congressional District, where the Trump-endorsed state Representative Russell Fry managed to comprehensively beat congressman Tom Rice.
According to The Associated Press, Fry beat the five-term incumbent 51 percent to 24 percent.
Rice was one of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump over the January 6 attack on the Capitol and frequently criticized the former president over his actions surrounding the riot.
As a result, Trump urged his supporters to vote against Rice.
Another sitting GOP congressman Trump wanted to lose on Tuesday was Nancy Mace.
While Mace was not one of the 10 House Republicans who voted against Trump during his second impeachment, she was still highly critical of the president over the riot, as well as publicly stating she does not need Trump’s endorsement to win.
With most of the votes accounted for, Mace was declared the winner with 53 percent, with the Trump-backed Katie Arrington coming in second place on 45 percent.
Mace was the favorite to win Tuesday’s primary against Arrington, possibly highlighting that a Trump endorsement may not be as significant many believe.
However, it should be noted that while Rice and Mace have both been highly critical of Trump, Mace had started tone down her rhetoric in the run-up to Tuesday’s vote.
Rice continues to be a vocal critic of Trump over the incidents related to January 6, telling ABC News in June that he does not regret voting to impeach the former president and “would do it again tomorrow” if he could.
In comparison, Mace, who said Trump’s “entire legacy was wiped out” on January 6, had begun reining in her attacks. She recently described Trump as “the number one president” on her campaign trail and recorded a video in February declaring her support for him in a video message posted outside Trump Tower in New York City.
While still attacking Mace and wanting her voted from office, including saying she is “despised by almost everyone” just days before Tuesday’s vote in a Truth Social post, Trump ultimately praised Mace following her election victory.
“Congrats to Nancy Mace, who should easily be able to defeat her Democrat opponent!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
