As we reach the halfway mark of an exciting primary season, turnout numbers so far show Republicans have a lot to look forward to on Nov. 8th. From North Carolina to Georgia to Texas, Republicans are outpacing Democrats at the ballot box, our momentum is growing, and election integrity laws are proving effective. From coast to coast, Americans are ready for a new direction.
In the Lone Star State, Republican Mayra Flores flipped Texas’s 34th congressional district to become the first Mexican-born U.S. Congresswoman. Her district, which is 84 percent Hispanic in the deep blue Rio Grande Valley, is one that Democrats won by 13 percent in 2020. Her victory is proof not only that conservative values are resonating with Hispanic Americans, but also that the state’s election integrity law passed by Republicans last year is making it easier to vote and harder to cheat.
Texas wasn’t the only state where election integrity laws won big. For months, Democrats lied about Georgia’s election integrity law. They falsely claimed it was racist and insisted it would suppress minority turnout. Joe Biden smeared it as “Jim Crow in the 21st Century.” The MLB even withdrew their All-Star Game from Atlanta, costing the community tens of millions of dollars. In reality, the law expanded voting accessibility while adding safeguards against fraud. The legislation strengthened voter ID laws, expanded early voting hours on weekends, required better maintenance of voter rolls, and banned ballot harvesting. The results speak for themselves. More than 1.9 million Georgians voted in the state’s primary elections this year, an increase of 65 percent over 2018 when the total was less than 1.2 million.
Not only are more Georgians voting, they’re also coming out in droves for the GOP. Republicans in the Peach State overperformed their historical primary vote share totals compared to both 2020 and 2018, while Democrats underperformed. Election Day saw 98 percent more ballots cast in the 2022 GOP primary compared to the 2018 GOP primary. GOP vote share jumped from 52 percent in 2018 to 62 percent in 2022, while Democrats’ share shrank from 48 percent to 38 percent. Among Black voters, Republican turnout surged 2.3 times. For Asians, GOP turnout was 2.7 times higher. And turnout among Hispanic voters was three times higher. Georgians saw Democrats’ attacks on election integrity as the partisan hit job they were.
In fact, turnout was up all over the country for a simple reason: Voters are fed up with Joe Biden’s failed leadership and the skyrocketing prices for food and gas, surging crime rates, and unprecedented effort to force parents out of their kids’ education that has defined his administration.
In the Tar Heel state, North Carolinians nominated Ted Budd to face off against radical activist judge Cheri Beasley for an open Senate seat. Republican turnout was 86 percent higher than it was in the 2018 midterms and there were nearly 146,000 more primary votes cast by Republicans than Democrats. In Pennsylvania, Republican enthusiasm was strong up and down ballot. Pennsylvania GOP primary voters had higher turnout than Democrats for the first time in more than a decade. Republican turnout was 75 percent higher than it was in the 2018 midterms. And in Iowa, turnout surpassed the 2018 primary election by 61,952 ballots and Republican enthusiasm nearly doubled. GOP votes also made up over half the total votes cast, while Democrats accounted for only 44 percent.
Let’s be clear: Joe Biden has presided over one crisis after another. But instead of trying to fix problems as they arise, he’s actively made them worse. Gas prices are now above $5. Our southern border is wide open and, as a result, fentanyl is pouring into our communities — the deadly drug is now the leading cause of death for Americans aged 18-45. The latest numbers show inflation surged to another 40-year high in May, as Americans struggle to afford everyday goods. Biden is barreling the country toward economic catastrophe, but he doesn’t seem to care.
This is more than failed leadership. This is a total abdication of duty and a mind-boggling lack of empathy for Americans struggling to get through each week. Recent Republican wins are no mystery. Eighty percent of Americans think the country is on the wrong track. As Biden drags his radical party down with him, he’s hemorrhaging support among independent voters and the Democrats he needs to win. Nobody wants to be the last one off a sinking ship.
Meanwhile, voters are showing up because Republicans are offering the common sense, conservative solutions the American people want. The candidates who are winning believe in border security, cutting costs, protecting our kids from leftist indoctrination, and supporting our police. As Democrats flounder in the wake of Biden’s slow-motion implosion, Republicans are united and delivering wins up and down the ballot.
November 2022 will bring more of the same.
Ronna McDaniel is chairwoman of the Republican National Committee.