Texas state representative Steve Toth has defeated incumbent Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas) in Tuesday’s four-way Republican primary election for the second district in Texas.
Toth’s victory is one of the most surprising results in Tuesday’s primary elections in Texas, North Carolina and Arkansas.
Crenshaw, a Navy SEAL who lost his right eye to an improvised explosive device in Afghanistan, has served in the House since 2019, and while he’s a hardline conservative, he’s done a couple of things to annoy loyalists of President Donald Trump.
For one, Crenshaw voted to certify Trump’s 2020 election loss, and even joined three other Republicans in a group statement condemning Trump for the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol.
And Crenshaw has supported aid to Ukraine, prompting former Fox News host Tucker Carlson to call him “Eyepatch McCain.”
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Crenshaw slammed Toth as a “RINO,” or Republican in name only, in a TV ad proclaiming Crenshaw proudly stood with President Donald Trump, but the president did not endorse Crenshaw.
Last week, Toth’s campaign got a boost when Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas)endorsed him over Crenshaw. The endorsement may have had something to do with Crenshaw joining dozens of House Republicans in voting against an aviation safety bill written by Cruz.
“You know, my enemies have all come out with their knives — Tucker Carlson orTed Cruz — for no good reason,” Crenshawtold Fox News this week.
Texas Republicans’ redistricting scheme made the second district more conservative than it already was, so there’s not much chance a Democrat will defeat Toth in November’s general election.
