Trump endorsed 5 candidates in Tuesday’s primaries. Here are the winners.
Donald Trump's pick to be the next governor of Wisconsin won his primary last night — but the former president struck out, narrowly, in an attempt to take down the most powerful Republican legislator in the state.
While Adam Steen failed to defeat Wisconsin state Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, who won by a few percentage points, Trump picked candidates in a handful of other major races Tuesday as he continues stretching the power of his endorsement around the country.
He also avoided endorsing any candidates in Vermont and Minnesota, two states Biden won handily in 2020. Here are the Trump picks who won Tuesday night.
Connecticut wins
Senate
Leora Levy
Won with 51 percent of the vote.
Last week, Trump gave an endorsement to the Levy, the Republican National Committee member whom he nominated to be U.S. ambassador to Chile in 2020, though she was never confirmed. In his endorsement, Trump said Levy was a “tireless advocate” for the state — but spent the rest of the time bashing Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal’s “fake war story” from his time in the military and downplaying GOP opponent Themis Klarides’ endorsements from Republican governors.
Levy "will defeat the corrupt Richard Blumenthal in November, and what a victory that will be,” Trump said.
Wisconsin wins
Governor
Tim Michels
Won with 47 percent of the vote.
Trump threw his support in Wisconsin behind Michels, who has not been as specific about his stance on past and future election oversight as some other pro-Trump candidates running to take on Democratic Gov. Tony Evers. But the former president had a problem with former Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch, the other main candidate in the primary, over an old tweet with her daughter with the son of state Supreme Court Justice Brian Hagedorn — a judge who has been a swing vote with Democrats on some election-related cases, much to Trump’s chagrin.
Michels’ construction company was awarded a contract for the Keystone XL pipeline during Trump’s administration, though assembly was halted after President Joe Biden canceled the project last year.
“Tim Michels is the best candidate to deliver meaningful solutions to these problems, and he will produce jobs like no one else can even imagine,” Trump said in his endorsement.
Senate
Ron Johnson
Won with 84 percent of the vote.
The senator did not have a serious primary opponent. He has been embroiled in Jan. 6 investigations over the last year — in June, the House committee investigating the insurrection said a Johnson staffer was told to deliver “fake” elector slates from Michigan and Wisconsin to Pence before the certification process. Johnson has also dismissed the role of rioters at the Capitol, calling them “agents provocateurs” and “fake Trump protesters.”
Trump endorsed Johnson in April 2021, before he even announced a campaign to run, saying the senator “has no idea how popular he is. Run, Ron, run!”
WI03
Derrick Van Orden
Unopposed.
Democratic Rep. Ron Kind decided to retire from Congress this year after winning against Van Orden in 2020 by a few points in a pro-Trump district. The candidate attended the Jan. 6 protests outside the Capitol but called a Daily Beast report that he had entered a restricted area inaccurate, claiming later he was in D.C. for meetings.
In his endorsement, Trump commended his Navy history and fight for secure borders, the Second Amendment and farming industry.