Topline
Rep. Mo Brooks and former political staffer Katie Britt will face off in a runoff election for the Republican Alabama Senate nomination, the Associated Press projected, after neither candidate managed to win a majority of votes in Tuesday’s primary—two months after former President Donald Trump dramatically rescinded his endorsement of Brooks.
Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Ala.) addresses a “Save America” rally at York Family Farms on August 21, 2021 in … [+]
Key Facts
Britt led Brooks 45% to 28.8% early Wednesday morning, with 85% of votes counted, according to results compiled by the AP.
Veteran and businessman Mike Durant was in third place, at 23.3%, leading him to concede Tuesday evening.
Meanwhile, the AP projected Will Boyd will be the Democratic Senate nominee, though Republicans are heavily favored to win in November’s general election.
Key Background
Brooks was previously a top Trump ally, infamously encouraging the former president’s supporters to “start taking down names and kicking ass” in a rally hours before the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021. In April 2021, Trump issued an enthusiastic endorsement of Brooks for a Senate seat vacated by retiring Sen. Richard Shelby (R), declaring that Brooks “will never let you down.” Eleven months later, despite supporting Trump’s false claims of voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election, Brooks told attendees at a Trump rally that they should stop dwelling on the election and move on. Trump rescinded his endorsement, claiming that Brooks had become “woke” and abandoned his principles, after which Brooks’ once-decisive lead in the polls quickly dwindled. Brooks claims he fell out of favor with Trump after the former president asked him to “immediately remove” President Joe Biden from the White House and return Trump to power, a request Brooks says he rejected because such a seizure of power would have been unconstitutional.
Further Reading
“GOP Rep. Mo Brooks Claims Trump Asked Him To Reinstate Trump Presidency” (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/zacharysmith/2022/05/25/mo-brooks-will-face-tough-runoff-in-alabama-gop-senate-primary-after-losing-trumps-endorsement/