Republicans began to coalesce around nominee Thomas Smith, whose defunct campaign shocked Trump-back Navy veteran Amir Hassan in Tuesday’s primary.Smith won Tuesday’s primary after suspending his campaign last month, but will now resume his campaign for the swing seat despite raising virtually no money for his bid and otherwise being a nonfactor for much of the race.The result is a black mark for national Republicans, who had hoped Hassan’s background as a veteran and law enforcement official could keep the red-trending seat competitive. Hassan appeared on stage and spoke at a Trump rally last week before his surprise defeat.
Instead, Republicans turn to unknown and underfunded Smith, and on Wednesday, the National Republican Congressional Committee offered him its support, congratulating him in a social media post.“Congratulations to Thomas Smith! Michiganders just chose a retired GM engineer, small business owner & father of three veterans to fight to lower the cost of living in Congress,” the NRCC wrote on X. “Remember to VOTE for Thomas in the General Election on Tuesday, November 3.”Republican National Committee Chairman Joe Gruters also released a statement commending Smith on his win.With 99% of the votes counted, Smith brought in 50.4% of the vote, compared to Hassan’s 33.2% and Al Lemmo’s 16.4%. President Donald Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) have not commented on Smith’s victory after previously backing Hassan.In a handwritten note to the Federal Election Commission last month, Smith wrote his campaign raised just $1,850 through June 30. He said he was filing his paperwork by hand because of issues logging into his candidate portal, as most candidates file electronically.
