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 Images

Rep. Madison Cawthorn, the scandal-prone freshman lawmaker backed by former President Donald Trump, conceded defeat in his Republican major election on Tuesday night.

Cawthorn called state Sen. Chuck Edwards to concede the race, the congressman's spokesman advised 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. 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 mentioned 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 among this 12 months's critical U.S. Senate races: Rep. Ted Budd will win the Republican Senate main within the race to fill the seat of retiring GOP Sen. Richard Burr, NBC projected.

Budd is backed both by Trump and the influential conservative group Membership for Development. He'll face off within the general election in opposition to Cheri Beasley, former chief justice of the North Carolina Supreme Courtroom, who NBC projected would handily clinch the Democratic nomination.

The swing-state contest is one in every of a handful that will determine whether Democrats maintain their majority in the Senate break up 50-50 by social gathering. Vice President Kamala Harris holds a tiebreaking vote for Democrats.

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

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

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

Tillis came out swinging against Cawthorn. He endorsed Edwards, a prime rival within the GOP main. A political action committee affiliated with Tillis reportedly spent greater than $300,000 on advertisements attacking Cawthorn. And after the watchdogs raised issues of attainable insider buying and selling, Tillis overtly known as for a congressional ethics investigation into Cawthorn.

Trump, meanwhile, defended Cawthorn in a social media put up over the weekend.

"Recently, he made some foolish mistakes, which I don't consider he'll make again," Trump mentioned of Cawthorn, including, "Let's give Madison a second chance!"

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

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