NRCC Forced to Settle for Extreme, Unelectable Candidates… Again.

The biggest takeaway from last night’s primaries? The NRCC is saddled with even more “weak” and “amateur” candidates they’ll have to halfheartedly prop up until November. After being asleep at the wheel as Qanon extremist J.R. Majewski became their OH-09 nominee, the NRCC is swallowing another hard pill this morning after they failed to stop the two most extreme Republicans in the NC-01 and NC-13 Republican primaries.

In NC-01, the Republican nominee is now MAGA Republican Sandy Smith, a far-right extremist who has been accused of a pattern of domestic violence toward her family, has repeatedly promoted the unfounded conspiracy that the 2020 election was rigged, and even marched on the Capitol on January 6th. Kevin McCarthy’s super PAC tried – and failed – to prevent her from winning, coming in with an eleventh hour cash infusion and running negative ads against her. Read more about Sandy Smith here.

In NC-13, Bo Hines, a 26-year-old “supreme opportunist,” surfed to victory on a tidal wave of outside spending and Donald Trump’s endorsement. There’s just one big problem: Even local Republicans don’t want him. Hines has been battered for months by local headlines about his inability to raise money from North Carolinians, the local Republican opposition to his candidacy, and how his “youth and lack of connection to the district will be a real challenge” in his bid for this battleground district. Hines has staked out extreme positions and has aligned himself with the most fringe wing of his party, proudly touting endorsements from Marjorie Taylor Greene, Matt Gaetz, and soon-to-be former Rep. Madison Cawthorn. Read more about Bo Hines here.

While the NRCC tried to cover their bases in NC-13 by adding three candidates to their “On The Radar” list, their preferred and ONLY endorsed candidate in NC-01 was Sandy Roberson, who lost last night to Sandy Smith.

The NRCC has yet to congratulate Sandy Smith. Will they take two whole days to endorse like they did with Majewski?

DCCC spokesperson Monica Robinson: 

“In two crucial battleground districts, the NRCC is forced to defend extremist MAGA Republicans who are not ready for primetime. Smith and Hines are impossible options for North Carolinians and voters will reject them at the ballot box this November.”

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