What Went Down In The June 21 Elections In Alabama, Virginia And Georgia

Today, we’re watching the fate of not only a few Trump picks but also an ex-endorsee vying for an open U.S. Senate seat in Alabama’s primary runoffs. The former president initially backed Rep. Mo Brooks — a onetime ally of Trump who spoke to rallying crowds on Jan. 6, 2020 — until Trump withdrew support shortly ahead of the May 24 primaries and, earlier this month, backed Brooks’s challenger Katie Britt.

Though a longtime denier of the 2020 election, Brooks advocated for Republicans to recalibrate their focus toward 2022 and 2024 races. Brooks’s poor polling numbers may also have become a deal breaker for Trump, who touted Britt as an “America First Warrior” in his endorsement of her.

In Georgia, two Trump endorsees are on today’s primary runoff ballots, both seeking U.S. House seats — Vernon Jones in Georgia’s 10th District and Jake Evans in Georgia’s 6th District. Jones, a former Democrat, might have the former president’s blessing, but he’s up against trucking industry executive Mike Collins, who holds an endorsement from multiple Republican leaders, including Gov. Brian Kemp. Evans, meanwhile, is facing physician Rich McCormick, who boasts about double the fundraising capital that Evans does. Even if Trump’s preferred candidates don’t win tonight, though, both the 6th and the 10th districts are squarely red, meaning that the winners in these primaries are poised to take the seat in November.

Finally, Trump has also endorsed four incumbent representatives in Virginia — Ben Cline, Bob Good, Morgan Griffith and Rob Wittman — though only Cline faces primary competition. (Good actually already won renomination at a May convention.) Cline’s up against 28-year-old newcomer Merritt Hale to serve Virginia’s 6th District, which Cline has represented since 2019 and will likely continue to do.

Here are all the Trump-endorsed candidates I’ll be keeping an eye on tonight: