Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) defeated his Republican challenger in a primary election Tuesday and will likely coast to reelection despite an ethics investigation and a concerted effort by some Republicans to unseat him.
Republican Aaron Dimmock, a former Navy pilot, accused Gaetz during their race of caring more about his own fame than doing his job as a congressman.
“He’s more focused on the number of press appearances he makes than showing up for votes or serving his constituents,” Dimmock said on his campaign website. “The headlines about his ethics scandals are a never-ending embarrassment for our district.”
The House ethics committee said in June it was investigating whether Gaetz “engaged in sexual misconduct and illicit drug use, accepted improper gifts, dispensed special privileges and favors to individuals with whom he had a personal relationship, and sought to obstruct government investigations of his conduct.”
Gaetz led the effort to oust former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) last year, leaving Republicans leaderless for several weeks before they settled on Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.) as a replacement.
Dimmock faced an uphill battle against Gaetz, whose father served in the Florida Senate and paved his son’s way into politics. But Dimmock got a boost from a McCarthy-aligned political action committee that ran a TV ad highlighting Gaetz’s ethics troubles.
“2017: According to a witness, Congressman Matt Gaetz has sex with a 17-year-old girl,” the ad said. The alleged witness in question is Joel Greenberg, a former Florida tax collector who was friends with Gaetz.
In a 2021 plea agreement, Greenberg admitted to engaging in commercial sex acts with an underage girl. “Greenberg also introduced the minor to other adult men, who engaged in commercial sex acts with the minor,” the plea deal read.
Gaetz has denied the accusation, and the Justice Department declined to prosecute him. He claimed during the primary that Dimmock was a “raging liberal” who supports Black Lives Matter.
Both candidates said they supported former President Donald Trump, but only Gaetz had Trump’s endorsement.
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