In an unusual result in one of the key primary races to be decided Tuesday, a Trump-backed Republican lost a U.S. House race to a candidate who was no longer running for the position. The surprise outcome boosts Democrats’ chances of holding onto the battleground seat and makes it increasingly likely that there will be no Black Republicans serving in the House next year.
Trump-backed Amir Hassan defeated by Thomas Smith, who dropped out of race in July
Amir Hassan, the Republican endorsed by President Trump in the U.S. House race for Michigan’s 8th District, lost Tuesday to Thomas Smith, with Smith receiving over 50% of the vote compared to only 33% for Hassan. The result was a shocker given that Smith had dropped out of the race in July and endorsed a third candidate, Al Lemmo, who finished with 16% of the vote. Reacting to his surprise win, Smith appeared to indicate that he would accept the Republican nomination to compete against Democratic incumbent Kristen McDonald Rivet in November. Smith told The Detroit News that he was “humbled and honored that Republicans have chosen me to take the fight to Kristen McDonald Rivet.” Smith expressed confidence that he would be elected to Congress, saying “I look forward to working with Speaker Johnson and the entire Republican team to expand our House majority and advance President Trump’s America First agenda to lower costs for working families and make America affordable again.” Hassan, meanwhile, addressed the loss in a video posted on social media. “I fell short last night. I make no excuse. It was a tough race,” Hassan said, congratulating “all the winners yesterday” and calling on Republicans to “flip the 8th” in November.
Speculation that Republicans rejected Hassan because of his name
A number of commentators have attributed the defeat of the Trump-endorsed Hassan, a military veteran and former law enforcement officer who touted his Christian values in the campaign, to negative voter reaction to his name. Pundit and New York Times contributor Matthew Yglesias asked in a social media post “Is there more to this story than “GOP primary voters won’t vote for a guy named ‘Amir'”??
MeidasTouch Editor-in-Chief Ron Filipkowski was more definitive in his assessment of the result. “Republican primary voters are so racist that a guy named Tom Smith who DROPPED OUT OF THE RACE is going to defeat Trump’s endorsed candidate because his name is Amir Hassan.”
Trump confidant Laura Loomer, who is known for posting racist attacks and xenophobic statements, also attributed the loss to Hassan’s name. “‘Amir Hassan’ claims he’s not a Muslim, but it doesn’t matter. His name sounds like he’s fresh off the boat and MAGA voters reject the Islamic infiltration of our country and party,” Loomer posted. “This should be an eye opener to Trump’s advisors that we don’t want Muslims, Arabs or anyone who may even sound Arab or Islamic serving in office.”
Result shakes up race, has implications for makeup of next year’s Congress
The surprise result of the race has several potential implications for November’s general election and beyond. The result shakes up a race that was expected to be competitive. Incumbent Rep. McDonald Rivet won the district, which covers Flint and other cities, by nearly 7 points in 2024, but President Trump won the district by 2 points during the same election. Since then, the demographics of the district have shifted toward Republicans, but McDonald Rivet has a large fundraising advantage going into a general election race that is still ranked as favoring Democrats. The result of this race, in turn, could help determine whether Democrats succeed in their quest to retake Congress. And the loss by Hassan makes it more likely that, regardless of which party controls Congress, there will be no Black Republicans in the House of Representatives. As Blavity previously reported, all 4 Black Republicans currently serving in the House of Representatives will be leaving their positions in January. One of these departing Republicans, Congressman James John, is leaving his seat to run for governor of Michigan and won his primary race on Tuesday.
With John and other sitting representatives leaving Congress and Hassan losing his primary race, the U.S. House is poised to have no Black Republicans next year. While a number of factors have contributed to this likely outcome, many are speculating that the rejection of Hassan may have come down to his name and the assumptions that Republican voters made about him.