Utah Congressman Chris Cannon lost to Republican primary challenger Jason
Chaffetz last night. Chaffetz took about 60 percent to Cannon's 40
percent, a comfortable margin. Cannon has been targeted in the last
three races by conservatives upset with his high-profile support of
amnesty for illegal immigrants. He has been beaten at the
Republican state convention before, but in the last two contests he
fought back to win the primary. He was able to outspend Matt
Throckmorton in 2004 and 2006 challenger John Jacobs was
inexperienced and gaffe-prone, telling an interviewer right before
the election that the devil was interfering with his campaign.
Cannon's defeat is a big win for immigration hawks. Conservative
primary challengers who have run mainly or entirely as single-issue
restrictionists tend to do about as well as Buddy Witherspoon did
against Lindsey Graham last week: They get between 30 to 40 percent
of the vote -- in a few cases, where the incumbent has galvanized
national opposition, they can exceed 40 percent -- but rarely win
if the incumbent is otherwise conservative. I expect those who
exulted in the "Throckmorton thumping" will revise and extend their
remarks about immigration politics. Well, no, I don't really.
topics:
Immigration
