First-term Congressman loses Virginia GOP nomination

LYNCHBURG, Va. — A freshman Virginia GOP congressman who angered social conservatives in his district when he officiated a gay wedding lost his party’s nomination.

U.S. Rep. Denver Riggleman lost a GOP convention Saturday that was done via drive-thru because of the coronavirus pandemic. He was defeated by Bob Good, a former official in the athletics department at Liberty University.

While the convention ended at 7 p.m., the vote tally was not announced until after 1 a.m. Sunday. Good won 58% of the vote, campaign manager Nancy Smith told The Associated Press. Fifth District Republican Committee Chairman Melvin Adams said 2,537 of the more than 3,500 registered delegates voted, news outlets reported.

“Resounding win!” Smith wrote in an email.

Riggleman, a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, upset many Republicans in his district last summer when he officiated the wedding of two male campaign aides.

Riggleman has said a small coterie of Republican insiders were trying to rig the contest against him, forcing the nomination process to be decided with a convention instead of a primary. Conventions favor more conservative candidates and have been used for years by Virginia Republicans to block moderate Republicans from winning office.

“Voting irregularities and ballot stuffing has been reported in multiple counties in the #VA05. Voter fraud has been a hallmark of this nomination process and I will not stand for it,” Riggleman tweeted a little over an hour before results were announced. “VA—GOP needs to reevaluate their priorities. We are evaluating all our options at this time.”

President Donald Trump endorsed Riggleman, as did Liberty University President Jerry Falwell Jr.

Good is now the Republican nominee for Virginia’s 5th Congressional District. Four Democrats are vying to challenge him in the fall, with the winner picked later this summer.