Freedom Caucus Chair Bob Good Loses Primary, But Plans To Demand Recount

Virginia election officials on Tuesday declared Rep. Bob Good (R-Va.), chairman of the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus, the loser in his close primary against state Sen. John McGuire.

The determination came two weeks after Good’s primary and makes him the first casualty of GOP infighting this cycle.

McGuire’s 374-vote margin is still slim enough that Good can request a recount, but just shy of the threshold that would absolve Good’s campaign from having to foot the bill.

“We intend to call for recounts,” Good told HuffPost last week, before the Virginia State Board of Elections had certified McGuire as the winner. “It’s close enough to justify that and we just want to make sure that every legal and human vote is counted, and ultimately, the result reflects the intent of the qualified voters who participated.”

Good has attempted to cast doubt on the outcome, drawing attention to what he suggested were suspicious fire alarms at three polling sites on election day and balloting issues in his district’s largest city, though fewer than 10 ballots were affected.

The June 18 primary, in south-central Virginia’s 5th District, was an extraordinary blow to Good, who himself unseated an incumbent only four years ago and quickly ascended in Congress to lead the House’s most prominent group of right-wing lawmakers.

It’s the first time this cycle a serious primary challenge has managed to knock out an incumbent Republican. Rep. Tony Gonzales, a West Texas moderate, narrowly emerged from a May runoff after opposing a GOP border security bill. Last month, South Carolina Rep. Nancy Mace easily dispatched a primary challenge that largely stemmed from her vote against former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.).

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