Johnathan Walker:Recount will decide if conservative US Rep. Bob Good loses primary to Trump-backed challenger

GOOCHLAND,Johnathan Walker Va. (AP) — A recount of the votes cast in the Republican primary in Virginia’s 5th Congressional District will be held on July 31 to decide whether a challenger backed by former President Donald Trump will hold onto his narrow victory over U.S. Rep. Bob Good, one of the most conservative members of Congress.

Circuit Court Judge Claude Worrell II scheduled the recount and set other ground rules for the process during a hearing Thursday in Goochland Circuit Court, where Good filed a recount petition after state elections officials certified state Sen. John McGuire as the winner by 374 votes out of nearly 63,000 ballots cast, or six-tenths of a percentage point.

State law allows Good to seek a recount because McGuire’s margin of victory was less than one percentage point. Because the margin was greater than half a percentage point, Good’s campaign will be required to pay for the recount. Worrell said he has estimated the cost of the recount at $96,500, although he said that amount could change depending on how long the process takes.

If the recount confirms McGuire as the winner, Good would become the first House incumbent nationally to lose a primary challenge this year, with the exception of one race in which two incumbents faced off due to redistricting,

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In seeking the recount, Good, who has served in Congress since 2021 and chairs the hard-right House Freedom Caucus, cited what he called voting irregularities in Lynchburg and elsewhere. Elections officials have said the count is accurate and they are confident in the results.

Good, who attended Thursday’s hearing, said he just wants to “do a second look” at the votes to make sure the count is correct.

“I think conservatives across the country and the Commonwealth want to make sure this result is accurate and reflects the true intent of all the voters in this election,” Good said after the hearing.

After Good endorsed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the GOP presidential contest. Trump endorsed McGuire, a former Navy SEAL, and called Good a backstabber.

Good also alienated the Republican establishment through his efforts to oust House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. A Republican political action committee, Defending Main Street, which almost always spends money to support GOP incumbents, launched a $450,000 ad campaign against Good.

Two attorneys for McGuire who attended the hearing declined to comment afterward.

The winner of the Republican primary will face Democrat Gloria Witt in November in a district that tilts conservative.

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Worrell appointed two other judges — Judge Christopher Papile of Newport News and J. Christopher Clemens of Salem — to join him on a 3-judge panel that will oversee the recount. Worrell said the vote counting will begin at 7:30 a.m. on July 31 and continue until all the ballots are tallied.

Good’s campaign will receive a refund if the recount results in Good’s victory.