MINNEAPOLIS, JUly 14, (AP): Republicans got a straighter path to potential victory Saturday in what is expected to be Minnesota's closest congressional race when GOP-endorsed candidate Tayler Rahm dropped out of a primary fight against the better-funded Joe Teirab, who already had tacit backing from key House leaders.
Rahm, a political newcomer and defense attorney, said in a statement that he was shifting gears to serve as a senior adviser to former President Donald Trump's campaign in Minnesota, where Trump insists he can defeat President Joe Biden after coming close to carrying the traditionally Democratic state in 2016.
That gives Teirab - a Marine Cops veteran, former federal prosecutor and son of a Sudanese immigrant - free rein to focus on incumbent Democratic Rep Angie Craig in the highly competitive 2nd District, which includes suburban and rural areas south of Minneapolis and St. Paul, and represents one of the best pickup opportunities for the narrow House Republican majority.
"In my opinion, there is nothing more important for this district than getting Biden (or a Democrat replacement) out of power and getting Donald Trump back in the White House," Rahm said in a statement. "Therefore, I will suspend my campaign operations and focus on doing everything possible to save our country.”
Rahm won the endorsement with 74% of the vote at the district GOP convention in April, with backing from grassroots conservatives despite Teirab's huge fundraising edge and expected support from establishment Minnesota Republicans like House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, who is Trump's state chairman.