House Freedom Caucus Chairman Bob Good (R-VA) sidestepped Speaker Mike Johnson‘s (R-LA) calls for a unified party and instead endorsed Rep. Tony Gonzales’s (R-TX) challenger, a sign that GOP infighting is not stopping as the 2024 elections approach.
Good endorsed Brandon Herrera, a gun rights activist and social media influencer, who is heading to a runoff election with Gonzales after neither candidate could reach 50% of the Republican vote. Having to go to a runoff and losing endorsements from fellow House colleagues are signs that support for the Texas congressman may be dwindling due to his voting record.
“He has proven to be the kind of courageous conservative warrior we need to change Washington,” Good said in a statement, speaking of Herrera.
Herrera announced it was an “honor” to receive Good’s endorsement on Thursday.
“I look forward to joining them in their fight against the uniparty establishment, and to truly put Americans and Liberty first,” Herrera said in a post on X.
It’s an honor to have the endorsement of Congressman @RepBobGood, Chairman of the House Freedom Caucus.
I look forward to joining them in their fight against the uniparty establishment, and to truly put Americans and Liberty first. pic.twitter.com/CIroNGxrl7
— Brandon Herrera (@TheAKGuy) April 4, 2024
Gonzales’s campaign declined to comment on Good’s endorsement of Herrera to the Washington Examiner.
Good’s endorsement of Herrera goes against the wishes of Johnson, who recently pleaded with his colleagues not to campaign against one another at the GOP retreat in March. While Johnson was making that request, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) opted to skip the retreat and campaign for Herrera.
Many other Republicans have ignored Johnson’s calls to end party infighting. In addition to campaigning for Herrera, Gaetz endorsed Rep. Mike Bost’s (R-IL) primary challenger, Darren Bailey. Former President Donald Trump also has called for a challenger to Rep. Laurel Lee (R-FL), who initially backed Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) in his presidential bid before switching her endorsement to Trump.
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The Freedom Caucus chairman has ruffled many feathers within the Republican conference since he voted to oust former California Rep. Kevin McCarthy as speaker last fall — so much so that Good is now facing his own primary challenger, Virginia state Sen. John McGuire. McGuire has earned the endorsements of a handful of House Republicans, including some from Good’s Virginia delegation.