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Marjorie Taylor Greene has become the first proponent of the far-right conspiracy theory QAnon to win a seat in the United States House of Representatives.
Greene, a Republican businesswoman, was declared the winner in Georgia’s 14th congressional district, the AP reported. Greene’s Democratic opponent had retired in September.
The future congresswoman has faced national scrutiny for racist and bigoted statements and her support for QAnon, a baseless conspiracy theory rooted in anti-Semitic tropes whose supporters believe Donald Trump is secretly fighting a cabal of Democrats, billionaires and celebrities. involved in child trafficking. The FBI has identified the movement as a potential threat of domestic terrorism and has repeatedly inspired vigilante violence.
During a runoff of the August primaries, Greene took on John Cowan, a pro-Trump conservative who opposes abortion rights. Republican officials had initially denounced Greene after videos surfaced of her making anti-Muslim, anti-Semitic and racist statements. The videos, obtained by Politico, appeared to show her arguing that Muslims should be banned from serving in the US government, comparing Black Lives Matter to the Ku Klux Klan, and promoting anti-Semitic falsehoods about billionaire financier George Soros.
Still, during the primaries, Greene’s campaign received support from groups related to Mark Meadows, the White House chief of staff, the chairman of the board of the prominent conservative thinktank Heritage Foundation, and numerous Republican mega donors.
While most people will probably be watching the results of the White House race, more than 7,000 US elections will take place on Tuesday, November 3.
In the era of disinformation, it is more important than ever that the media report election results as clearly and transparently as possible.
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There are a number of other highly reputable electoral “decision desks” in the American media. They can call races before AP. While The Guardian will report that this is happening, we will rely on AP data to make our own final call.
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Following his victory, leaders and elected officials from across the Republican Party have embraced Greene. Trump has repeatedly praised the candidate and has consistently refused to denounce QAnon.
Greene was not the only Republican candidate to endorse QAnon in this year’s election campaign. Angela Stanton King, a Republican candidate for Congress and a high-profile ally in Trump’s fight to win over black voters, also admitted to believing the unfounded conspiracy theory, even though she denied she was a QAnon supporter. He is expected to lose in his career to the position once held by the late civil rights icon John Lewis.
Media Matters, which has tracked down the misinformation, found 27 candidates on the ballot this month who endorsed or gave credit to QAnon’s content. Of them, 25 are Republicans and the other two are independents. Dozens more have run for office this year, the group said.
