With about 83 percent reporting, Ryan had 84 percent of the vote (47,838 votes) to challenger Paul Nehlen’s 16 percent (9,047 votes), according to an Associated Press count of unofficial election returns. The AP declared Ryan the victor about a half hour after polls closed.
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“Desperate candidates do desperate things for attention and I think that’s what we saw here”, Ryan said. Nehlen spent much of his campaign trying to tie himself to Donald Trump, but the Republican presidential nominee ended up grudgingly endorsing Ryan last week. But Ryan, who had downplayed the challenge, easily handled the businessman by a 5-1 margin.
His victory also served as a reminder that the GOP’s conservative establishment remains powerful, despite years of battles with the insurgent tea party.
“I know (Ryan’s) going to win, but it sends a message”, Simenson said.
“When you get to the end zone, you act like you’ve been there before”, Ryan said at the National Guard Armory in Janesville.
Ryan, Ayotte and McCain had criticized Trump’s feud with the family of Army Captain Humayun Khan, who died in the line of duty in Iraq in 2004 and was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for bravery after his death.
He said he planned to take the same approach in the general election against Tom Nelson, the Democratic Outagamie County executive who ran unopposed. GOP Rep. Reid Ribble’s retirement set off a scramble among Republicans to succeed him, and three are vying in the primary. The supporters complied with officials and moved into appropriate campaigning areas – 100 feet from polling places – when asked.
Polls are open in Wisconsin where voters are making decisions in a primary election. But people can’t vote in both parties’ primaries.
But Ryan responded quickly to Trump’s dabbling in his race, determined to avoid the fate that befell House Majority Leader Eric Cantor in his surprise primary loss in 2014.
Thanks largely to Trump, an expected walkover for the country’s highest-ranking Republican officeholder became one to watch on Tuesday.
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The contest was overshadowed by presidential candidate Donald Trump’s brief refusal last week to endorse his fellow Republican.
