Vaughn Ward, dubbed the “worst candidate ever” by TPMDC, has lost the Republican contest to take on Rep. Walt Minnick (D-ID) in the state’s first Congressional district.
Ward was the Republican establishment’s pick for the seat. The National Republican Congressional Committee had named Ward a “Young Gun,” and former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin stumped for Ward at a rally last week.
Ward, a veteran of the Iraq War, lost to state Rep. Raul Labrador, getting just 39% of the vote. Labrador received 48%.
Ward had outspent Labrador, doling out $436,865 to Labrador’s $67,792 as of May 5. Ward’s also been in the race for 14 months; Labrador entered the race in December, only five months ago.
But Ward was inundated with bad publicity over the past weeks. In one damning video, Ward suggests Puerto Rico is a country. Another video, put together by a Labrador supporter, shows a speech by Ward side-by-side with President Obama’s 2004 DNC speech: Ward apparently plagiarized the person who should be an Idaho Republican’s greatest political enemy.
He also made a slew of other gaffes.
