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Trump-backed candidates vie for Republican nominations in West Virginia and Nebraska
CNN
The next phase of the fight for dominance of the Republican Party will be decided Tuesday in a key House contest in West Virginia and the gubernatorial primary in Nebraska, where former President Donald Trump is backing a candidate facing allegations of sexual misconduct.
Trump's influence is felt throughout May's GOP primaries as candidates clamor for his support, especially after his pick won in the Ohio Senate race last week. The candidates he's backed in Tuesday's marquee contests have stood beside him throughout his baseless campaign to raise doubts about the 2020 presidential election.
West Virginia, a state Trump has twice won overwhelmingly, will test the significance of his support in the first incumbent versus incumbent matchup of the cycle. Rep. Alex Mooney, whom Trump has backed, is facing off against Rep. David McKinley for the new 2nd Congressional District after the Mountain State lost a district in the post-census reapportionment process.
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In speeches, interviews, exchanges with reporters and posts on social media, the president filled his public statements not only with exaggerations but outright fabrications. As he did during his first presidency, Trump made false claims with a frequency and variety unmatched by any other elected official in Washington.