Skip to main content
U.S. Senate candidate Joey Gibson is losing his primary bid to win a seat in Congress representing Washington state Tuesday evening—but the far-right candidate was in fourth place in a crowded field in early results.
The leader of a far-right protest group called Patriot Prayer claimed 2.3% of the vote with about a third of precincts reporting. He still fell far behind the Republican front runner. This is not surprising, given that Gibson spent most of his time "campaigning" in Portland—in a different state.
He offered a platform with few substantive policy planks, beyond supporting President Donald Trump, offending liberals and physically fighting antifascists in Portland.
Incumbent Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and Republican challenger Susan Hutchison took the top two spots on the primary ballot, which will send them both to the general election to decide who will represent Washington in the nation's capital.
Gibson has led dozens of protests along the west coast. His events often attract alt-right figures, white supremacists and armed militia members. In Portland, the Patriot Prayer rallies often devolved into street brawls.
The worst-ever violence at a Patriot Prayer event broke out on June 30, when Gibson's followers, joined by a large coalition of Proud Boys, clashed with antifascist counterprotesters. Members of the far-right group beat antifascists with flagpoles after counterprotesters lobbed rocks and fireworks at the Patriot Prayer crowd. Five people sought treatment in Portland hospitals after the riot.
The most recent rally on Aug. 4 avoided similar beatings, but ended with police firing explosives and chemical irritants at the counterprotesters, injuring several people.