As both parties battle for control of the Senate in next year’s midterm elections, some Republicans are growing increasingly concerned that candidates in states crucial to winning a majority in the chamber may have baggage that could sink their bids.
To win a majority, Republicans would need to maintain their 50 current seats and pick up just one additional seat. Some party officials are optimistic that this could happen if a GOP gubernatorial victory in Virginia, gains in New Jersey, and a sinking approval rating for President Joe Biden signal voters might swing in their direction next year.
But some worry Republican candidates for the Senate in Pennsylvania, Missouri, and Georgia face significant misconduct allegations, which could imperil their efforts to win a general election should they succeed in their primaries, which could cost the party that potential majority.
Pennsylvania
An open seat in Pennsylvania is seen as a linchpin for Republicans seeking a majority in the Senate. Sen. Pat Toomey will retire at the end of his term, leaving open the seat he has held as a Republican for 12 years. Early polls indicate a tight race in a purple state, and Cook Political Report has ranked the race as a toss-up. Republicans are anxious to maintain control of the seat, and some are growing concerned the candidacy of Sean Parnell, the party’s early front-runner in the race, could derail that effort.
Parnell, a military veteran who narrowly lost a race for Pennsylvania’s 17th Congressional District in Pittsburgh’s suburbs last year, was endorsed in the race by former President Donald Trump. But since that endorsement, he has had his personal life spill into the public eye during divorce and custody proceedings, including allegations of domestic abuse.
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Christopher Nicholas, a veteran Republican political consultant, told the Washington Examiner “it’s all been downhill” for the candidate after Parnell received Trump’s endorsement.
“I think you have some people asking, why further complicate it for ourselves?” Nicholas said.
In court testimony, Laurie Snell, Parnell’s estranged wife, accused him of hurting her and their children, pinning her down and choking her, and striking one of their children. She also alleged he once left her along a highway and told her to get an abortion. In his own testimony, Parnell denied those allegations.
Snell also alleged Parnell had a nine-month affair during their marriage with his now-girlfriend, Melanie Rawley, who testified that she believed the couple to be separated when their relationship began.
Parnell’s campaign has reported less-than-stellar fundraising numbers since the domestic abuse allegations surfaced, although Trump has shown no signs of rescinding his endorsement.
One Republican operative told the Washington Examiner that Rawley’s ex-husband is also a veteran and compared Parnell’s alleged conduct to that of Cal Cunningham, the Democratic nominee who lost a Senate race in North Carolina last year after his affair with the wife of a veteran became public.
The Parnell campaign did not respond to an inquiry from the Washington Examiner.
In a statement posted on Twitter, Parnell thanked supporters for their thoughts and prayers “during this difficult time.”
I wanted to thank everyone for their support during this difficult time & for keeping my family in your thoughts and prayers. pic.twitter.com/S8kvHmwDEW
— Sean Parnell (@SeanParnellUSA) November 10, 2021
“The past week has been unquestionably the most trying in my young family’s life,” Parnell said. “Now that I have had the opportunity to present my case I will not have anything further to say until the judge issues his ruling.”
Politico recently reported prominent Pennsylvania Republicans are courting additional candidates to jump in the crowded primary field, including David McCormick, a combat veteran and business executive.
Missouri
Missouri Republicans are confident they will again win the Senate seat that will be vacated by retiring GOP Sen. Roy Blunt next year, but some are concerned that their controversial former governor could sink that effort.
Eric Greitens resigned as governor of the state after a woman with whom he had an affair accused him of attempting to blackmail her with nude photos. Greitens also faced criminal charges and an ethics investigation.
Though some Republicans believe Greitens, who is seeking but has not yet received Trump’s endorsement, could prevail, others say the scandal, which cost him the governorship, could also cost him a Senate seat.
Missouri Republican strategist Gregg Keller told the Washington Examiner that “Republicans will win this seat in a walk, provided we don’t nominate an incredibly damaged candidate like Eric Greitens.”
“We win this thing unless we do something silly like nominate someone with as much baggage as Eric Greitens,” he said.
Keller said the appeal of Trump for many Republican primary voters is that they viewed him as a fighter, but he argued they will ultimately see Greitens as a “quitter.”
“They need to be reminded, and will be reminded, Greitens quit as governor, not after he’d been impeached, he didn’t wait,” Keller said, adding voters want somebody who “doesn’t back down.”
“When the going got tough, Eric Greitens turned tail and ran,” he said.
The Greitens campaign, in a statement to the Washington Examiner, talked up the former governor’s chances of winning the Missouri Senate seat in 2022.
“Eric Greitens has consistently been one of President Trump’s fiercest defenders and continues to be a fighter for his America First agenda,” the campaign said, citing Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and “consultant grifters.”
“It seems like swampy D.C. insiders are scared of someone like Gov. Greitens flipping over the table to show how insidious these people really are,” the campaign said.
Georgia
Former football star Herschel Walker is seeking the Republican nomination to run against Democrat Sen. Raphael Warnock, who won a special election runoff in January. Walker has been backed by Trump, as well as Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.
McConnell reportedly hesitated to endorse Walker due to allegations that he threatened the lives of two women, including his ex-wife.
Cindy Grossman, Walker’s ex-wife, said in divorce filings that he was physically abusive and threatened to kill her. Grossman told ABC News in 2008 that Walker once pointed a pistol at her head, telling her, “I’m going to blow your f***ing brains out.” Myka Dean, Walker’s ex-girlfriend, reportedly told police in 2012 that he threatened to “blow her head off” and then kill himself if she ended their relationship.
Walker’s campaign denied Dean’s allegations. Walker has admitted to an altercation with his ex-wife, and his memoir acknowledges he had suicidal tendencies and episodes of violence that he said stemmed from mental illness.
“He has an opportunity to tell what is truly a redemption story,” an unnamed Senate Republican operative recently told the Washington Post.
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Walker’s primary opponent Gary Black has said the violent episodes should disqualify him as a candidate.
If Republicans maintain each of their current Senate seats next year, a win in Georgia would flip the chamber to their control. Trump lost the state in 2020, and two Republicans lost a January runoff election there, signaling an uphill battle in a typically red state.
