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Anxiety is growing among Republicans that Trump-aligned candidates who failed to cross the finish line last year could come back to haunt them in 2024, costing the GOP another chance at winning back power in Washington.

Kari Lake, who ran for Arizona governor in November and lost to Gov. Katie Hobbs (D), is weighing a bid for Sen. Kyrsten Sinema’s (I-Ariz.) seat, while Pennsylvania state Sen. Doug Mastriano (R) is considering a run against Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) after costing the GOP the governor’s mansion last year. 

The list goes on: Republican Joe Kent is gunning for a rematch against Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-Wash.) after he was narrowly defeated in 2022; J.R. Majewski, who’s House campaign imploded last year after it was revealed that he misrepresented his military service, has floated another challenge to Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio); and Bo Hines has already filed paperwork to run again for a North Carolina House seat he lost in November.

The growing list of Trump loyalists weighing congressional runs has Republicans now warning against writing them off as possible GOP nominees once again.

“There are people out there that just won’t go away,” one Republican strategist familiar with Senate campaigns said. “All the folks out there that want to say, ‘Oh, they’re nobodies, they don’t matter’ — they need a reality check. Kari Lake doesn’t speak for the whole party, but she’s loud; she knows how to get attention. And, at least to an extent, it holds the rest of the party back.”

Lake, Mastriano and other candidates are among a cohort of Trump-aligned Republicans who have questioned or espoused baseless claims about the 2020 election. While they prevailed in their respective primaries, their candidacies ultimately cost the party key races in the general election in swing states like Arizona and Pennsylvania in a midterm year that was assumed to favor Republicans. 

Concerns over the Republican Party’s candidate quality was brought to the fore ahead of the November midterms by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who cited that as reason for his bearish stance on the GOP’s chances of retaking the upper chamber. But it came too late after many of the party’s primaries had already wrapped up. 

Those same concerns remain as the GOP now stares down the possibility of many of those same candidates running again. Some Republicans warn it would be a mistake for them to mount new campaigns.

“Some of these people are just a glutton for punishment,” said Arizona-based GOP strategist Barrett Marson. 

“The only thing worse about being a loser is being a two-time loser. And people like Kari Lake and Doug Mastriano did not resonate with a broad swath of voters, and there’s nothing in the months since the election where they have changed or recognized their shortcoming and altered their strategy or message,” he continued. 

In Pennsylvania, Republican strategist Vince Galko noted that GOP members in the state have also expressed anxiety about a possible Mastriano Senate bid.

There’s “certainly a lot of hand-wringing going on amongst party leaders and donors and the political establishment with the thought of Doug Mastriano running for U.S. Senate” because he starts off “with solid name I.D. and a very strong base and if he should be on the same ticket as former President Trump, that would possibly give him a leg up as well,” he said.

“I think I, like many Republicans — you have to get to the point where you want to win, right?” Galko added.

The split-screen between Trump-aligned candidates and more establishment Republicans has not only become apparent at a national level but also on a state and local level. Last month, Kristina Karamo, another Trump-aligned candidate who has questioned the 2020 election results and lost her secretary of state race in Michigan last cycle, was elected the Michigan GOP chair last month.

Over in Colorado, former state Rep. Dave Williams — an election denier who tried to get the anti-Biden phrase “Let’s Go Brandon” as part of his name on the ballot and lost his GOP House primary against Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-Colo.) – was elected Colorado GOP chair earlier this month. 

While Republicans believe that national groups can opt to work around state parties in key races, some acknowledge having pro-Trump populists as state party chairs can offer unnecessary headaches for viable candidates.

“The fact that the chairmen of some of these parties can get on TV and say crazy things and then force candidates to respond to those crazy things, well, that’s detrimental,” said a GOP consultant based in the West who requested anonymity to speak candidly. 

Heading into 2024, both Senate and House GOP campaign arms have signaled that they’re handling their Republican primaries differently, with the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) already notably wading into the Indiana GOP Senate primary while the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) is signaling it’ll stay out of the primaries. 

The Congressional Leadership Fund, a super PAC aligned with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), has also agreed to stay out of safe Republican districts that have an open-seat primary after reaching a deal with the conservative Club for Growth amid McCarthy’s bid to become Speaker earlier this year.

“Chairman Daines has been clear he’s willing to do whatever it takes to nominate candidates who can win both a primary and a general election,” said NRSC communications director Mike Berg.

Some Republicans say they’d like the House campaign arm to get involved in some of the House primaries.

“Of course they will be on offense in a lot of districts around the nation in addition to trying to retain incumbents, but I do think that they should … consider getting involved in some primaries, maybe not all of them,” said Dick Wadhams, a former Colorado GOP chairman. “But there are some that do make a big difference obviously.”

Wadhams worried that a repeat of pro-Trump candidates who lost their midterm races last year could “potentially deny Republican majorities from being elected in both the House and the Senate.”

But other Republicans believe some of those concerns can be addressed at a candidate-recruitment level.  Six key players to watch in the banking crisis House Financial Services Committee schedules first hearing on collapse of SVB, Signature Bank

“There’s no use losing sleep over this. We just got to put our head down and focus on recruiting diverse and exciting candidates who can outrun the top of the ticket and unite the party,” said one Republican House strategist, using Reps. Juan Ciscomani (R-Ariz.) and John James (R-Mich.) as examples. 

Overall, many Republicans are signaling that the party and its candidates need to offer a forward-looking vision to voters and not focus on past elections. 

“Elections are always about the future,” said Dallas Woodhouse, a longtime Republican operative and executive director of the conservative South Carolina Policy Council. “And I think the people that put forward a forward-looking, optimistic vision for the future are going to be in a lot better shape. Voters are craving that, I think, without question.”

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Suárez out at Trackhouse Racing at end of 2025

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Suárez out at Trackhouse Racing at end of 2025

CONCORD, N.C. — Daniel Suárez, the only Mexican-born driver to win a NASCAR national series race, is out at Trackhouse Racing at the end of the 2025 season.

Trackhouse and Suárez officially called the parting a “mutual decision” that allows the driver an earlier opportunity to pursue a new ride for next season.

While Trackhouse did not name a replacement in the No. 99 Chevrolet, Suárez’s departure opened the door for the team to promote teen sensation Connor Zilisch into the ride. Zilisch, who drives in the Xfinity Series for JR Motorsports, has run three Cup races for Trackhouse this season, including Saturday night at Atlanta.

Suárez has just two wins in 305 career Cup starts, and is a distant 29th in the points standings this season. The 33-year-old Suarez is in his fifth season with Trackhouse Racing and was the team’s first driver in 2021. He made NASCAR’s playoffs two times with Trackhouse.

“We took a team nobody had even heard of in 2021 and in just a couple of years we were winning races and running upfront on a weekly basis,” Suárez wrote on social media. “Just like the seasons in a year, sometimes things change and we have agreed to each go in our own direction.”

Trackhouse founder and owner Justin Marks thanked Suárez for his contributions.

“The role Daniel has played in the Trackhouse origin story and its first five years will remain a valued part of the company’s history forever,” Marks said. “His commitment, work ethic and dedication to the effort is one of the most impressive things I personally have seen in my career.”

Trackhouse Racing also has Ross Chastain and Shane van Gisbergen under contract, along with Zilisch is its development driver. Chastain has six career wins and was the 2022 Cup Series runner-up while van Gisbergen has a win this year and is in the playoffs.

Suárez, who became an American citizen last year, also has three Xfinity Series wins and one Truck Series win. His 2016 championship in the second-tier Xfinity Series made him the only foreign-born driver to win a national series title.

He made a triumphant return last month to his home country when he won the Xfinity Series race in Mexico City driving for JR Motorsports at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez.

Yet the balance of celebrating a homecoming with looming contract negotiations weighed on Suárez.

“It’s not the first time that I’ve been in this position. Definitely the first time with the Mexico race, but it’s not the first time that I’ve been in the position that we have to win or in the position that we have a contract negotiation in the middle of the season,” Suárez said. “It’s definitely a distraction. I won’t sit here and tell you that it doesn’t really matter. I’m trying to be as smart as possible and to put all this stuff on the side and just do my thing on the track.”

He’ll do his thing at the track in 2026 with yet another new team.

Suárez started his Cup career with Joe Gibbs Racing and has raced for Stewart-Haas Racing and Gaunt Brothers Racing. He has Cup wins in 2022 at Sonoma and last year in Atlanta.

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NASCAR’s downtown Chicago future unclear

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NASCAR's downtown Chicago future unclear

CHICAGO — When it comes to NASCAR’s upcoming return to downtown Chicago, Julie Giese has a long list of responsibilities. The track president is monitoring an ambitious construction schedule for the street course, to go along with everything else that goes into the busy weekend.

What happens next is going to have to wait.

The future of NASCAR in Chicago is murky going into its third edition on the first weekend in July. The three-year contract between the motorsports organization and the city that was announced in 2022 has two mutual options, and their fate is unclear.

Giese said there have been “good conversations” between NASCAR and the city, and there is time to work on the possibilities beyond the event.

“So really right now the focus is on let’s execute a really great 2025,” Giese said. “We’ll continue to have the conversations with the city. But right now, honestly, the more consistent conversations are the planning conversations.”

Jason Lee, a senior adviser to Mayor Brandon Johnson, praised NASCAR for its involvement in the community and its improvements with the event. He described almost parallel discussions going on inside of the organization and the city when it comes to the future of the partnership.

Johnson’s predecessor, Lori Lightfoot, was in charge when the original agreement for the weekend was finalized.

“We remain available to have any conversations about the future,” Lee said Monday. “I know they’ve been laser focused on executing this year’s event because there are lessons they’ve learned that they want to apply. And I think some of that, whether you successfully do that, will play a role in how they want to proceed.”

One possible change that could interest the city is moving to a different weekend, something it has discussed with NASCAR in the past.

“It may make more sense to move that event to a different weekend where we don’t have as many demands on our law enforcement and other emergency personnel,” Lee told the AP. “And so that’s definitely something that we’ve contemplated, but there is also some constraints in terms of other events in the city of Chicago and the NASCAR schedule.”

The Athletic reported June 18 that NASCAR was nearing an agreement to put a street race in the San Diego area next year. An announcement could come as soon as July.

Asked if she had spoken with NASCAR or anyone in the San Diego area about a Southern California street race, Giese said her focus is on Chicago. She also said she believes there is room for multiple street courses on NASCAR’s calendar.

“We have multiple road course races on the schedule,” she said. “So I mean … I’ve not ever heard where it has to be one or the other. I mean there is room. This event, we went into it that first year knowing full well it was a proof of concept. And we showed that it is possible.”

The Xfinity and Cup Series races in Chicago — held on a 12-turn, 2.2-mile course against the backdrop of Lake Michigan and Grant Park — are the main events in a festival-like weekend that also includes music and entertainment options.

It is geared as much to a new audience in one of NASCAR’s most important regions as it is to the most ardent racing fans. NASCAR used to race at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, a 45-mile drive from downtown, but it pulled out after the 2019 season.

“This is a top-three market for us, worldwide frankly, for NASCAR fans,” NASCAR executive Ben Kennedy said when the Chicago event was announced in 2022.

There was some concern for drivers and their teams about the course ahead of the first weekend, and it wasn’t exactly warmly received by local businesses and residents because of the street closures in a heavily trafficked area for tourists in the summer.

But organizers have shrunk the construction schedule from 43 days in 2023 to 25 this year. Based on input from fans, they also have made adjustments to the race viewing areas and moved the concert stage to the start-finish line. Admission is free for kids 12 and under on Saturday and Sunday this year.

The weekend also has won over at least some people inside of NASCAR.

“This was very different. But now it’s fun to see and hear from people in the industry that are coming in early, and they’re going to just enjoy the city for a few days,” Giese said. “The one piece that I hear from our drivers, especially, is they love just staying right at a hotel right across the street. They’re walking across Michigan Avenue and they’re at the course.”

Quite often with an umbrella. Wet weather had a major effect on each of the first two editions. Heavy rain nearly scuttled the inaugural weekend, and last year’s Cup Series race was shortened because of a rain delay and fading sunlight.

When the drivers were on the course, the racing was compelling. Shane van Gisbergen outdueled Justin Haley and Chase Elliott en route to a historic Cup victory in 2023, and Alex Bowman stopped an 80-race drought with his victory last year.

“They’ve been up against it as far as conditions are concerned,” Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin said. “The track has been good, it’s been racy and has passing zones and the scenery is fantastic as far as the backdrop we are racing in. There’s a lot of positives for the Chicago Street Race.

“It will probably move around in the future, but it’s in the mold in which I would like to see any street race they continue to implement in the future.”

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Elliott uses last lap to post ‘unbelievable’ win

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Elliott uses last lap to post 'unbelievable' win

HAMPTON, Ga. — Home-state favorite Chase Elliott passed Brad Keselowski on the final lap and won the crash-filled NASCAR Cup Series at Atlanta on Saturday night for his 20th career victory.

Elliott, the popular driver from Dawsonville, Georgia, earned a spot in the NASCAR playoffs with his first victory since April 2024 at Texas. It was his first win in Atlanta since 2022.

“I’ve never in my whole life, this is unbelievable,” Elliott said. “This is something I’ll remember the rest of my life.”

The race’s second crash early in Stage 2 took out many of the sport’s biggest names and left others with damaged cars. Pole winner Joey Logano, who led the first 36 laps before light rain forced the first caution, was among the many drivers caught up in the big crash.

Among others knocked out of the race: William Byron, Austin Cindric, Ross Chastain, Josh Berry, Corey LaJoie and Daniel Suarez.

“It wrecked the whole field,” Logano said. “I still don’t know exactly how it started … but it was total chaos. Cars were sideways and on the brakes. I got hit from every corner possible.”

Added Denny Hamlin, who suffered damage to his Toyota in the crash: “Some zigged. Some zagged. Most crashed.”

The Atlanta race at EchoPark Speedway, formerly known as Atlanta Motor Speedway, was the debut of the 32-driver In-Season Challenge, a five-race, bracket-style tournament.

The parade of highly regarded drivers to be knocked out so early in the race showed the perils of trying to pick NASCAR winners on a March Madness-style bracket sheet. The top two seeds were among the early casualties.

Hamlin, the No. 1 seed in the tournament, finished 31st and lost to Ty Dillon, who finished eighth.

Chase Briscoe, who held off Hamlin for his first win for Joe Gibbs Racing last week at Pocono Raceway, was the No. 2 seed before being knocked out in a crash and losing to Noah Gragson in the tournament.

A $1 million prize awaits the winner as part of a new media rights deal that includes TNT.

Elliott and Keselowski were on the front row when a caution with 33 laps to go forced a decision on whether to pit for fresh tires. Both stayed on the track, and Elliott faded following the restart until making his decisive charge at the very end.

Ryan Blaney was knocked out on a wreck late in the first stage. Christopher Bell hit the wall, triggering the crash that ended the stage with Cindric in the lead.

Cindric was involved in the bigger crash early in Stage 2. Kyle Busch, Hamlin and Bubba Wallace were among others involved in the crash.

Photo finish

Tyler Reddick beat Elliott to the finish line by 0.001 to win Stage 2 in a battle between drivers looking for their first stage win and overall victory of the season.

Weather woes

Lightning and rain delayed qualifying Friday and the Xfinity race won by Nick Sanchez late Friday. More lightning and rain threatened Saturday night’s race. Fans were encouraged to leave the stands about 90 minutes before the race due to severe weather in the area but were allowed to return as the pre-race was conducted as planned.

Up next

The Cup Series moves to Chicago for the Chicago Street Race on July 6.

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