Attorney Tayler Rahm wins GOP backing in battleground Second District race

GOP activists have backed conservative attorney Tyler Rahm to take on U.S. Rep. Angie Craig in Minnesota’s 2nd District, a targeted battleground for both parties this fall.

Rahm, who has never run for office before, presented himself as an outside candidate in the race. He beat out former federal prosecutor Joe Tirap who said so He plans to run in the primary in August Regardless of the results of the ratification conference on Saturday. Ram won the first ballot with 74% of the votes of party activists, compared to 25% for Tirab.

“I am deeply proud and humbled by the trust placed in me by the CD2 delegates,” Rahm said in a statement on Saturday. He added, “As your Republican nominee for Congress, I am committed to tirelessly defending our shared values ​​and fighting for changes that benefit all of us, not just some of us.”

Endorsed Republican candidates in Minnesota tend to win primaries, but Tirap has significantly outperformed Rahm so far this cycle. He recently reported that he finished March with $662,000 in the bank, while Rahm has $59,500 in cash.

“This election is too important to allow Angie Craig to compete against the weakest Republican competitor in decades,” Tirab said after the vote. “We have the message and resources to prosecute the case against Angie Craig, and I look forward to earning the trust and support of Republican primary voters.”

The outcome of the race is of great importance to Republicans, who are fighting this fall to maintain their narrow control of the US House of Representatives. The 2nd District, which Craig has represented since 2018, is one of the few remaining swing districts in the country that offers them a shot at receiving. Some Republicans worry that a potential primary fight will give them a disadvantage in the race, while others have criticized the endorsement process for selecting candidates who do not have broad appeal.

DFL Party Chairman Ken Martin said Republicans backed a “rubber stamp for their MAGA agenda” in support of Rahm.

“In Congress, Tyler Rahm will serve as a rubber stamp for congressional Republicans as they push for a national abortion ban, seek more tax breaks on private benefits for Big Pharma, and make devastating cuts to Social Security and Medicare,” he said.

In other support conferences on Saturday, four Republicans They seek party support in the suburban 3rd District, which opened after DFL U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips announced he would not seek re-election.

In the western state of Minnesota, current US Representative Michelle Fischbach and her rival Steve Boyd are competing for Republican support. Both candidates have indicated they plan to continue running in the August primary, regardless of who wins the party’s endorsement at Saturday’s convention.

“Despite having every opportunity to respect our party process, our traditions, and the views of grassroots delegates, Steve Boyd is challenging support and forcing a primary,” Noran Dillon, executive director of Fischbach’s congressional campaign, wrote in a recent email.

Boyd, 38 years old Political outsider, a small business owner from Kensington, London, has never held any public office. He said the 7th Congressional District would be better served by a new voice, arguing that Fischbach, a former state senator for more than two decades, is a political insider.

“My goal is to do politics in a different way and to govern in a way that gets more people involved in the process,” Boyd recently told the Star Tribune. “Don’t just rely on numbers until we win. Stand on principle.” He added that he would be willing to shut down the government to fix the border crisis.

Fischbach has one of the most conservative voting records in Congress and was endorsed by former President Donald Trump. However, many Trump-aligned conservative activists in the district are backing Boyd over Fischbach.

The 7th District endorsement agreement is expected to be controversial. some Conservative activists from Otter Tail County Those trying to become delegates could disrupt the conference. Most of these activists support Boyd and could make the endorsement race more competitive if they sit as delegates.