Grand Rapids — John Gibbs, the Trump-backed challenger to U.S. Rep. Peter Meijer, is claiming victory in west Michigan’s 3rd congressional race in nationally watched results. A political appointee to former President Donald Trump’s Department of Housing and Urban Development, Gibbs was nominated as the ultraconservative replacement for Grand Rapids Township incumbent Meijer, who was one of 10 House Republicans referred to then-President Donald Trump after Jan. 6 . , 2021 U.S. Capitol Riot. Gibbs declared victory early Wednesday morning at a watch party at his campaign headquarters in Wyoming, a suburb of Grand Rapids. Meijer conceded the fight around 1:30 am. on Wednesday in a statement. The Associated Press has yet to call the fight. Gibbs had about 52% of the vote to Major’s 48% with about 85% of precincts reporting in a congressional district that includes parts of Kent, Muskegon and Ottawa counties. Trump called Gibbs shortly after 1 a.m. Wednesday to offer his congratulations, adding, “I’ll see you soon. I’m very proud of you, John.” Gibbs told reporters that Trump encouraged him to “keep it up” and to keep “kicking butt.” In a victory speech surrounded by supporters in the early hours of Wednesday morning, he wished Meijer “the best in his future endeavors.” “From now on, we face a challenge in November with a Democrat,” he said. “I think it will be very favorable for us.” Gibbs is expected to face a general election in a district that President Joe Biden won in 2020 and has been touted as one of the few districts that Democrats may be able to flip in a tough midterm election year. The Cook Political Report changed the race from “tossing” to “weak Democratic” after announcing the race for Gibbs. The contest between Meijer and Gibbs has gained national attention as the Republican Party continues to grapple with rifts between traditional conservatives and Trump loyalists. If defeated, Meijer would be the sixth of the 10 House Republicans who voted for impeachment to leave at the end of his term. Two others faced primaries Tuesday. Trump endorsed Gibbs but notably did not come to Michigan to campaign for him in the final days of the campaign, despite Gibbs’ fundraising struggles as Major and his allies gave millions to oppose him. Dave Wasserman, the US editor of the Cook Political Report, tweeted around 10 p.m. that the “biggest surprise of the night so far” was Meijer’s strength in the primary. But what appeared to be a neck-and-neck race most of the night differed as the results came down to Gibbs stepping up and Meijer being placed further back. Shortly after speaking with Gibbs on the phone, Meijer issued a statement congratulating his rival. “I am proud to have remained true to my principles, even when it came at a significant political cost,” Meijer said in the statement. “While this was not the outcome we hoped for, I will continue to do everything possible to lead the Republican Party, West Michigan and our country in a positive direction.”
The referral was made
Gibbs, 43, grew up in Lansing and studied computer science at Stanford University. He worked as a software engineer for startups in Silicon Valley and eventually joined Apple to work on the iPhone. Fluent in Japanese, he left California for Japan to serve as a Christian missionary for seven years. He earned a master’s in public administration at Harvard University before joining the Trump administration’s HUD, overseeing homelessness programs and community development block grants. He moved to Byron Center, south of Grand Rapids, after Trump allies recruited him to run against Major. Gibbs has cast himself as a surrogate endorsed by Trump, who says it was “mathematically impossible” for President Joe Biden to win the 2020 election and is defending allegations of voter fraud that have been dismissed by courts, legislative investigations and audits due to lack of evidence. . After voting in Byron Center south of Grand Rapids Tuesday morning, Gibbs was asked if he would accept the results of this election. “We’ll see,” he said. “If the elections are going on, there will be no problem.” Meijer, 34, is the son of Meijer Inc. superstore executive chairman Hank Meijer. He grew up in East Grand Rapids, went to Columbia University and served in an Army intelligence unit in Iraq. He later worked as a conflict analyst in Afghanistan and earned an MBA at New York University before running to succeed Republican-turned-libertarian former U.S. Rep. Justin Amas in 2020. Meijer described himself as an effective lawmaker who fought for veterans and pushed back against the Biden administration’s policies, which he says contributed to high inflation and gas prices. He supports the decision to impeach Trump after his supporters arrived at the capitol on Meijer’s third day in office. “We always expected this to be a tight race,” Meijer told The News early Wednesday morning before the results came out. “There were a lot of people who counted us out weeks if not months ago. I’m proud of the strength we’ve been able to show so far.” Outside groups gave more than $3.6 million to the 3rd District GOP primary race, mostly supporting Meijer and opposing Gibbs. A Meijer family-backed political action committee, Principled Leadership for Michigan, has spent nearly $1.4 million on the fight this cycle. Meijer’s campaign and leadership PAC spent more than $2 million this cycle, compared to just under $334,000 spent by the Gibbs campaign. But last Tuesday, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee announced it would spend $425,000 to run a television ad in the Grand Rapids area boosting Gibbs in the final week before the primary. The ad was a faux attack on Gibbs that was seen by many in both parties as a move to promote his name to Trump’s base. He claimed Gibbs is “too conservative” for West Michigan, but also said he was “handpicked” by Trump to run for Congress, worked in his administration and would follow Trump’s policies in office. Meijer called the spending hypocritical. Gibbs said of the ad: “I don’t know what their strategy is and I don’t really care.”
Change in western Michigan
Sue Atkinson, a poll worker in Grand Rapids, said she voted for Gibbs. “I just voted for a change,” Atkinson said. She added that she felt Meijer assumed she would get the support of her community and that she was getting two to three pieces of mail a day from his campaign. “That’s when we knew he was running scared because he was doing so much mail. That was the biggest release.” On Tuesday night, Meijer supporters gathered at the Social House Kitchen and Bar in downtown Grand Rapids to watch the results come in. State Rep. Tommy Brann, R-Wyoming, attended the party. He said he supports Meijer because he is an honest, humble and “good person.” “I make mistakes, too,” Brann said of Major’s no-confidence vote, which he disagreed with. “Just because he made a mistake doesn’t mean you walk away from someone you like.” Mark Mochel of Grand Rapids also attended the Meijer watch party, which broke up around midnight. A self-described moderate conservative, he said he feels he no longer has a “political home.” “Radicals on both sides control the talking points, and I think Peter Meijer represents a more moderate position,” he said. “I think it would be a huge disservice to this community and to the country if we pushed out any moderates on either side.” About 10 miles south, Gibbs supporters held a watch party at his campaign office above a real estate office. Some supporters sang “MAGA” to the “YMCA” song, miming the letters with their hands raised. Later they danced to “Johnny B. Goode” by Chuck Berry. Cheers erupted when early returns showed Gibbs leading 63 percent to 37 percent shortly after 9 p.m. Brenda Wodarski of Rockford was among those dancing. “If they don’t win, people haven’t done their homework,” he said of Gibbs and Republican gubernatorial candidate Ryan Kelly, who lost Tuesday to conservative commentator Tudor Dixon. “They listen instead of investigating. Everyone has to do their own research.” Also in attendance was Robert “RJ” Regan, a failed Republican House candidate who was condemned by Michigan GOP Chairman Ron Weiser after he said he told his daughters, “if rape is inevitable, you should just lie down and enjoy him”. Gibbs and Meijer shared similar positions on many conservative policies, including abortion, immigration, inflation and government spending. Both supported the recent US Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade and do not support exemptions for abortion in cases of rape or incest. They dispute the results and implications of the 2020 presidential election: Gibbs argued that the 2020 election was rigged and that Trump was the real winner of the national presidential race, despite multiple audits and lawsuits at nearly every level of government who failed to find evidence to support his theory. Meijer acknowledges that Biden won the election and said that Trump “bears responsibility for inciting the rebellion.” Analysts said Meijer is the only candidate with a chance to defeat Democratic candidate Hillary Solten in the general election in the newly created 3rd election, which Biden won in 2020. Gibbs pushed back on that analysis, saying Meijer would have less likely because of his dwindling support from his own party. “If John Gibbs wins this primary, then the Democrats will take this seat as long as Hillary Solten is alive on Election Day,” Adrian Hammond, CEO of consulting firm Grassroots Midwest, told The News last year. month. “This is a very competitive seat, and if the Republicans didn’t have a credible incumbent with a very good resume and a more moderate tone in this district, . . .
