By Leo Wolfson, State Politics Reporter
Leo@cowboystatedaily.com
U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney is calling the 2022 midterm elections “a clear victory for team normal.”
During an Anti-Defamation League event on Thursday, the Wyoming Republican and outspoken critic of former President Donald Trump said she was pleased with an overall poor showing for Trump-endorsed candidates.
“People coming together to say, ‘We believe in democracy, we believe in standing up for the Constitution and for the Republic,’ and a real rejection of the toxicity and the hate and the vitriol and of (former President) Donald Trump,” Cheney said.
Election Deniers
Deniers of the 2020 presidential election results, most of whom received an endorsement from Trump, had disappointing results in Tuesday’s election. There were 170 election deniers in key U.S. House, Senate and statewide races projected to win their elections as of Friday morning, far fewer than half the total field of candidates.
Republican Harriet Hageman, winner of Wyoming’s lone U.S. House seat who soundly beat Cheney in August, is one of these candidates, as is state Rep. Chuck Gray, R-Casper, who won his race secretary of state unopposed.
Cheney’s Dem Endorsements
Cheney has vehemently opposed those who have denied the results of the 2020 election, actively endorsing three Democrats who were facing candidates who questioned the results of the election.
In the end, two of the three Democrats Cheney directly endorsed won their elections. U.S. Reps. Elissa Slotkin, D-Michigan, and Abigail Spanberger, D-Virginia, won, while Rep. Tim Ryan, D-Ohio, lost his senate bid.
When Cheney was asked about her choice to endorse Democrats, something she hadn’t done before, Cheney said it “reflects the challenges and the threats that we’re facing as a nation.”
Ticket Splitting
Ticket splitting, a much more common phenomenon in the past, was seen in Tuesday’s elections, as Republicans were nominated in more blue-leaning areas and Democrats had success in states that have historically tilted for Republicans.
“There’s just been a real recognition of — we don’t minimize our policy disagreements, we absolutely have policy disagreements — but we recognize that there is something much bigger and more at stake and that we have to come together and stand for fundamental democratic principles, stand for the rule of law,” Cheney said.
Although Cheney never directly endorsed Arizona’s Democratic candidates for governor and secretary of state, she actively campaigned against their Republican opponents.
In the Arizona governor’s race, Trump-endorsed Republican Kari Lake is trailing Democrat Katie Hobbs by a small margin with around 400,000 ballots still left to be counted. In the secretary of state race, Democrat Adrian Fontes leads Republican Mark Finchem by 5.4%.
Republicans in general were more successful in the midterms, flipping at least around a dozen House seats with the Senate still up for grabs.
