House Majority Leader Cantor defeated in primary

RICHMOND, Va. – Majority Leader Eric Cantor, the second-most powerful man in the House of Representatives, was dethroned by a little-known, tea party-backed Republican primary challenger who rolled to victory on a wave of public anger over calls for looser immigration laws, in one of the most stunning upsets in modern American politics.

Cantor’s loss on Tuesday to economics professor David Brat was the first primary setback for a leader in Congress in recent years. Former House Speaker Thomas Foley of Washington state and Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle of South Dakota both lost their seats at the polls in the past two decades, but they fell to Republicans, not to primary challengers.

The victory was by far the biggest of the 2014 campaign season for the tea party movement which advocates reducing the federal deficit through deep spending cuts but opposes tax increases. Last week, tea party supporters forced veteran Mississippi Republican Sen. Thad Cochran into a June 24 runoff and hope state Sen. Chris McDaniel can prevail then.

The outcome may well mark the end of Cantor’s political career, and aides did not respond Tuesday night when asked if the majority leader, 51, would run a write-in campaign for the November election.

But the impact of Cantor’s surprise loss on the fate of immigration legislation in the current Congress seemed clearer still. Conservatives will now be emboldened in their opposition to legislation to create a path to citizenship for immigrants living in the country illegally, and party leaders who are more sympathetic to such legislation will likely be less willing to try.

Many establishment Republicans say the party can ill afford to stick to an uncompromising stand on the immigration issue, given the increasing political influence of Hispanic voters.

The majority leader had been tugged by two warring forces in his party and in recent weeks sought to emphasize his opposition to far-reaching immigration legislation as Brat’s challenge gained force. Last month, a feisty crowd of Brat supporters booed Cantor in front of his family at a local party convention.

Still, neither he nor other House leaders betrayed any serious concern that his tenure was in danger, and his allies leaked a private poll in recent days that claimed he had a comfortable lead over Brat.

In the end, despite help from establishment groups that enabled him to vastly outspend his political novice opponent, Cantor’s repudiation was complete in an area that first sent him to Congress in 2000.

With votes counted in 99 per cent of the precincts, 64,418 votes were cast, roughly a 37 per cent increase over two years ago.

Despite that, Cantor polled fewer votes than he did in 2012 — 28,631 this time, compared with 37,369 then.

“This is a miracle from God that just happened,” exulted Brat, as his victory became clear in the congressional district around Richmond.

Speaking to downcast supporters, Cantor conceded, his wife, Diane, at his side. “Obviously we came up short” in a bid for nomination to an eighth term.

House Speaker John Boehner issued a statement hailing Cantor as “a good friend and a great leader, and someone I’ve come to rely upon on a daily basis as we make the tough choices that come with governing.”

It was unclear if Cantor intended to remain in his leadership post for the duration of the year, and who might replace him in the new Congress if Republicans hold their majority.

Democrats seized on the upset as evidence that their fight for House control this fall is far from over.

“Eric Cantor has long been the face of House Republicans’ extreme policies, debilitating dysfunction and manufactured crises. Tonight, is a major victory for the tea party as they yet again pull the Republican Party further to the radical right,” said the Democratic House leader, Nancy Pelosi of California. “As far as the midterm elections are concerned, it’s a whole new ballgame.”

Cantor was appointed to his first leadership position in 2002, when he was named chief deputy whip of the party and became the highest-ranking Jewish Republican in Washington. It was a recognition of his fundraising skills as well as his conservative voting record, at a time Republican leaders were eager to tap into Jewish donors for their campaigns. Since Boehner became speaker in 2009, Cantor has been seen as both a likely eventual successor and at times a potential rival.

Much of the primary campaign centred on immigration, where critics on both sides of the debate have recently taken aim at Cantor. Brat accused him of being a top cheerleader for “amnesty” for immigrants who are living in the U.S. illegally. Cantor responded forcefully by mailing out fliers boasting of blocking Senate plans “to give illegal aliens amnesty.”

It was a change in tone for Cantor, who has repeatedly voiced support for giving citizenship to certain immigrants brought illegally to the country as children. Cantor and House Republican leaders have advocated a step-by-step approach, rather than the comprehensive bill backed by the Senate – but were persistently vague on the details. But they have made no move to bring legislation to a vote and appear increasingly unlikely to act this year.

Brat teaches at Randolph-Macon College, a small liberal arts school north of Richmond. He raised just over $200,000 for his campaign, while Cantor spent more than $1 million in April and May alone to try to beat back his challenge.

Brat offset the cash disadvantage with endorsements from conservative activists like radio host Laura Ingraham and with help from local tea party activists angry at Cantor.

In the November election, Brat will face Democrat Jack Trammel, also a professor at Randolph-Mason College.

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Associated Press writers David Pace and Erica Werner in Washington and Larry O’Dell, Steve Szkotak and Michael Felberbaum in Richmond contributed to this report. Espo reported from Washington.