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

Rep. Madison Cawthorn speaks earlier than 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 primary election on Tuesday night time.

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

NBC News projected Edwards as the first winner within the state's 11th Congressional District on Tuesday night time. He led the race with more than 33% of the vote, in contrast with roughly 32% for Cawthorn.

"Congratulations to @ChuckEdwards4NC on securing the nomination tonight," Cawthorn said in a tweet. "It's 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 yr's vital U.S. Senate races: Rep. Ted Budd will win the Republican Senate major within 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 Membership for Development. He'll face off in the basic election in opposition to Cheri Beasley, former chief justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court docket, who NBC projected would handily clinch the Democratic nomination.

The swing-state contest is one in every of a handful that will decide whether or not Democrats preserve their majority within the Senate split 50-50 by get together. Vice President Kamala Harris holds a tiebreaking vote for Democrats.

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

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

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

Tillis got here out swinging towards Cawthorn. He endorsed Edwards, a top rival in the GOP primary. A political motion committee affiliated with Tillis reportedly spent greater than $300,000 on ads attacking Cawthorn. And after the watchdogs raised issues of attainable insider buying and selling, Tillis overtly called for a congressional ethics investigation into Cawthorn.

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

"Not too long ago, he made some silly mistakes, which I don't consider he'll make once more," Trump mentioned of Cawthorn, including, "Let's give Madison a second likelihood!"

Asked by NBC News about Trump's submit, Tillis replied, "Technically, this is the sixth or seventh likelihood."

"He hasn't learned from a mistake he's made over the past year," the senator stated of Cawthorn.