Cawthorn lost the GOP House primary in North Carolina

(The hill) – Rep. Madison Kothorn (RN.C.) ceded to his main rival, U.S. Senator Chuck Edwards, marking the end of a brief but controversial term in the House that won him critics on both sides of the aisle.

Coutorne’s campaign confirmed that the MP had surrendered to Edwards. The Associated Press has not yet announced the race.

Heading for Tuesday’s primary election, Kotorron faced a crowded field of Republican rivals, although he remained the favorite for the nomination in the 11th Congressional District of North Carolina.

But the many controversies and missteps that followed Kothorn’s re-election seem to have caught up with him.

Cawthorn drew a handful of Republican rivals last year after saying he would change the county to run for a seat closer to Charlotte. However, he returned to his old neighborhood after state courts confiscated a new map of the North Carolina House.

Since then, Coutorne’s political difficulties have only continued to increase.

He angered many of his fellow Republicans in the House earlier this year after suggesting in a podcast interview that his colleagues attended orgies and snorted cocaine. He was also the subject of a series of vicious revelations, including a leaked nude video, which he dismissed as “blackmail.”

In two separate incidents this year, he was cited for driving with a revoked license and attempting to carry a weapon through an airport checkpoint. And he drew headlines for calling Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky a “thug.”

Kotorn tried to throw the revelations and attacks as an effort by the so-called Washington to overthrow him.

But Cawthorn also made powerful enemies in his home state. Senior Republicans in the state General Assembly supported Edwards, as well as Senator Tom Tillis (RN.C.).

Retiring Sen. Richard Burr (RN.C.) called it a “shame” during a March speech on CNN.

However, Kotorn retained the support of former President Trump, who backed him last year and doubled his support before the primary, saying the first-term congressman had made some “stupid mistakes” but deserved a “second chance.”

However, that approval was not enough to save him from defeat on Tuesday.