Matt Gaetz's primary is the last stop on Kevin McCarthy's revenge tour
Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz’s primary presents the last opportunity for former Speaker Kevin McCarthy to exact revenge on the Republicans who ousted him last year.
Rep. Matt Gaetz’s primary in Florida on Tuesday presents the last opportunity for former Speaker Kevin McCarthy to exact revenge on the Republicans who ousted him last year.
Gaetz, however, is the heavy favorite as he faces Navy veteran Aaron Dimmock in Tuesday’s primary, when voters head to the polls in Florida, Wyoming and Alaska.
McCarthy, R-Calif., has backed Dimmock, and Florida Patriots PAC, a group tied to McCarthy's allies, has spent $3.5 million on ads against Gaetz, according to the ad-tracking firm AdImpact. The group has run ads referring to an ongoing Ethics Committee investigation into Gaetz over alleged drug use and sexual misconduct. Gaetz has criticized the investigation as “frivolous.”
But Florida Patriots PAC stopped spending in the race three weeks ago, a sign that Gaetz is in an advantageous position.
Kevin McCarthy and Florida GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz.Getty ImagesGaetz is the final member of the GOP cohort that voted to remove McCarthy as speaker to face a primary this year. While most members of that group who ran for re-election have won renomination, House Freedom Caucus Chairman Bob Good, of Virginia, lost a close primary this summer.
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