HFC Chair Bob Good Loses GOP Primary On Close Recount

Rep. Bob Good (R-VA), chair of the hardline conservative House Freedom Caucus (HFC), has lost the Republican primary for Virginia's fifth congressional district after a lengthy recount following the 18 June primary election. Good, a controversial figure who had made political enemies among both Republican right-wingers and moderates, was confirmed to have lost the primary to State Senator John McGuire by a narrow margin of 374 votes (0.6%).

• The House Freedom Caucus is believed to include (its membership is not public) polarising figures such as Arizona's Andy Biggs and Paul Gosar, Georgia's Marjorie Taylor-Greene, and Ohio's Jim Jordan (vice chair). Its membership is believed to stand at at least 39 (out of 220 GOP Representatives), making it one of the smallest Republican blocs, but also one of the most vocal and headline-grabbing.
• Good had lost support among Trump supporters, following his early backing of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for the GOP presidential nomination, and among moderates for his vocal efforts to remove former Speaker Kevin McCarthy from his position.
• Rep. Andy Ogles (R-TN) is seen as one of the favourites to take over from Good, having won his own district's primaryby a narrow margin on 1 August. As has been the case since the 2022 mid-terms the HFC could prove crucial to Republican chances of passing legislation if the party retains the Speaker's gavel.