Republicans at Open House Seats: Small gains for the Freedom Caucus

As the primary season draws to a close, the contours of next year's Republican freshmen are becoming clearer. Voters in the Republican primaries have chosen their future representatives in 27 clearly Republican seats, while the general election is now virtually a formality.

Former President Donald Trump continues to have a strong influence on the House Republican Conference. All but two of the candidates he endorsed won their primaries this election cycle, and many more ran as “pro-Trump” candidates supporting his MAGA agenda.

The candidates he endorsed included former staffers and diehard MAGA supporters, as well as people with personal ties to Trump and his family – and even those who were clear favorites before the primaries. In total, the former president endorsed candidates in 16 Republican House primaries this election cycle. Ideologically, some are staunch conservatives who are likely to join the Freedom Caucus, while others are allies of the Republican leadership in the House.

Meanwhile, former Speaker Kevin McCarthy's multimillion-dollar vendetta against the Republican rebels who overthrew him was largely a failure. Representative Bob Good, chairman of the House Freedom Caucus, was the only