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Former President Donald Trump is throwing his help behind ex-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s chosen successor for his empty seat in Congress.
Vince Fong, a California Assembly member who labored as McCarthy’s district director for nearly a decade, is considered one of 9 candidates working to exchange him in Central Valley for his House seat.
One of his opponents, Tulare County Sheriff Mike Boudreaux, has courted the endorsements of former Trump officers like former performing Director of National Intelligence Richard Grenell and ex-chief deputy, Kash Patel.
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“I am proud to join California’s Republican Congressional Delegation, and give Vince Fong my Complete and Total Endorsement!” Trump wrote in a put up on Truth Social. “Vince was one of only 6 Republicans in the State Assembly to stand with me, and reject the Second Impeachment Hoax. In Congress, Vince will work with me to Grow the Economy, Lower your Taxes, Cut Burdensome Regulations, Champion American Energy, and Protect and Defend the Second Amendment, which is under siege by the Radical Left.”
Assemblyman Vince Fong speaks throughout a press convention in Santa Ana, California, on June 16, 2023. (Jeff Gritchen/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register through Getty Images)
Endorsing Boudreaux final month, Grenell and Patel described him as the anti-establishment, America First alternative. “Sheriff Mike Boudreaux is an America First patriot who has proven he is a principled fighter for freedom,” Grenell mentioned, The Porterville Recorder reported on the time. “California needs leaders with courage to stand up to Washington bureaucrats. His record proves he is the right choice for the Valley.”
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Patel mentioned, “Sheriff Boudreaux is the kind of leader we need in Congress, one with the courage to stand up and fight, not back down, and put American first,” The Recorder reported.
Former President Donald Trump participates in a city corridor hosted by Fox News on Feb. 20, 2024, in Greenville, South Carolina. (Fox News)
Patel declined to remark additional when reached Wednesday by Fox News Digital. Grenell didn’t instantly reply.
McCarthy resigned from the House of Representatives on Dec. 31, practically three months after he grew to become the primary speaker in historical past to be ousted from the job.
It’s a deep-red district, anchored in Bakersfield, and Fong’s Republican opponents have already been combating to enchantment to Trump’s MAGA base.
Another of his opponents, Kyle Kirkland, is a enterprise proprietor and nonprofit animal rescue operator who’s making an attempt to painting himself as an outsider. His web site proudly declares he’s “not a career politician.”
Kyle Kirkland is a major candidate within the particular election for California’s twentieth District after the seat was vacated by Kevin McCarthy, who resigned in December after being ousted as speaker. (Kirkland for Congress)
Trump’s endorsement of Fong is probably going to give him a lift with voters who might have been cautious over his years-long ties to the GOP institution. Fong wrote on X, the platform previously identified as Twitter, quickly after the former president’s announcement, “Thank you… for your endorsement! Let’s get to work to secure the border, improve our economy, and defend our water and energy resources!”
Fox News Digital reached out to Fong for additional remark.
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The election to exchange McCarthy is scheduled for May 21. Before that, the pool of 9 candidates will get whittled down to two in a March 19 major.
Rather than holding party-specific primaries to nominate candidates for the overall, California’s election legal guidelines mandate a single “jungle primary” the place the highest two vote-getters, no matter celebration affiliation, advance to the overall election.
McCarthy is broadly held as an institution Republican who additionally labored to turn into a staunch Trump ally.
Just earlier than a gaggle of eight hardline GOP lawmakers voted with all House Democrats to oust McCarthy, the former president wrote on Truth Social, “Why is it that Republicans are always fighting among themselves?”
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