Thomas Smith emerged victorious in the GOP primary for Michigan’s 8th District on Tuesday, capturing just over 50% of the votes, as projected by CBS News. Remarkably, this win comes despite Smith having suspended his campaign in mid-July.
In an unexpected turn, Smith managed to surpass Amir Hassan, who had received an endorsement from former President Donald Trump. Trump had even joined Hassan and other Republican candidates at a recent rally in Milford, Michigan.
Smith, who describes himself as a salsa entrepreneur and a former engineer at General Motors on his campaign website, faced challenges with fundraising. In a handwritten correspondence to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) dated July 12, he revealed that he had only accumulated $1,850 in contributions by June 30.
He also encountered difficulties with the FEC’s online filing system, noting in a postscript, “I could not file this form electronically because I have had no success logging in and have not been able to get a response from the help desk.”
After withdrawing from the race, Smith publicly endorsed Al Lemmo, who ultimately placed third behind Hassan.
Following his surprising primary win, Smith expressed gratitude in a statement to the Detroit News, stating, “I am humbled and honored that Republicans have chosen me to take the fight to Kristen McDonald Rivet,” the current Democratic congresswoman representing the district.
The 8th District, which includes Flint and various regions of Central Michigan, is one of 13 congressional districts where voters elected a Democrat but leaned toward Trump in the 2024 presidential election.
Hassan, a Navy veteran with experience in federal law enforcement, expressed his feelings of disappointment but not defeat in a post on X.
So far, Hassan is the only Trump-endorsed House candidate in the current midterm election cycle to lose a primary. Trump referenced Hassan’s defeat indirectly during a speech in Las Vegas, stating, “I endorsed a lot of candidates, and the end result — I was 28 wins and one loss. It was a little bit of a person that I thought was a good person. Didn’t have much of a chance, but I said, ‘I don’t care, I’m doing it anyway.’” He added, “Good person, very good, very respected, but nobody knew who the person was.”
