Candidates Import Their Own Mess
Florida's race exposes a party-wide candidate problem
Aug 19, 2026 · 3 min · 4 segments
When out-of-state candidates cross state lines just to grab open congressional seats, local voters lose out. From Madison Cawthorn leaving North Carolina to Illinois rivals relocating to compete for…
half of the candidates running for Byron Donald's old seat either ran for or were elected to office in other states.
Now they're running against each other here.
So it's a mess out there, but candidate quality matters.
That speaks to the overall lack of discipline of a national party and a state Republican party.
I remember when I was national chairman, almost out of the box, having to deal with issues because it was so hanky.
But the reality of it is what you're saying, Mo, really speaks to a lack of discipline within the party to do a number of things.
I'm sorry, you just don't get to show up in my state and think you're going to run for a congressional seat in my state.
Didn't the president endorse one
So that's why I saw Hanky, because you have a titular head of the party who don't know.
I mean, again, what is our message right now? The number one priority is the economy.
half of the candidates running for Byron Donald's old seat either ran for or were elected to office in other states.
Now they're running against each other here.
So it's a mess out there, but candidate quality matters.
That speaks to the overall lack of discipline of a national party and a state Republican party.
I remember when I was national chairman, almost out of the box, having to deal with issues because it was so hanky.
But the reality of it is what you're saying, Mo, really speaks to a lack of discipline within the party to do a number of things.
I'm sorry, you just don't get to show up in my state and think you're going to run for a congressional seat in my state.
Didn't the president endorse one
So that's why I saw Hanky, because you have a titular head of the party who don't know.
I mean, again, what is our message right now? The number one priority is the economy.
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Candidates Import Their Own Mess
Florida's race exposes a party-wide candidate problem
Republicans Lose Their Economic Message
Republicans struggle to define an economic message
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