Sunday, October 2, 2022

Ellsworth, Edwards headed for run-off in E. Deschire gubernatorial primary

 DEROSA, E. Des. -- The crowded Conservative primary for East Deschire governor is headed to a run-off election.

None of the six candidates received 50 percent of the primary vote, so the top two will advance to a run-off election held next Tuesday.

Attorney General Mark Ellsworth secured first place in the initial count, with 21.6 percent. 

It was a close finish for the second spot in the run-off, with University of East Deschire men's basketball coach Duke Edwards clinching the spot with 17.5 percent, respectively.

Not far behind Edwards was Hansboro Mayor Bill Engstrom, who took 16.5 percent, followed by Christen-Kerr Mayor Phil Qwenberry with 15.9 percent.

Fawnton businessman David McKinley came in fifth place with 14.3 percent, and former Iraq War and Afghanistan War veteran Tim Hutsell with 14.2 percent, respectively.

That means Ellsworth and Edwards will face each other on Tuesday's run-off, in what is expected to be a close contest.

Both men are strongly conservative and have deep roots in the Harvest State.

Already though, lines are being drawn between the two.

Edwards was immediately endorsed by Engstrom and Qwenberry, who are both viewed as "moderates."

Their support has led the Ellsworth campaign to characterize Duke Edwards as a "faux-Conservative."

"How do you know Duke Edwards is a liberal masquerading as a Conservative? He was just endorsed by two liberal candidates, Phil Qwenberry and Bill Engstrom," said Mark Ellsworth at a campaign gathering in Dresden, a small farming town 70 miles northwest of Derosa.

"Duke Edwards says he's 'honored' to be endorsed by Bill Engstrom and Phil Qwenberry," Ellsworth told the crowd. "But we know that an endorsement from those two liberals just confirms what we already knew about Duke Edwards -- he's not a real Conservative. He's a fake. He's a phony. He has no backbone. He'll bend to whatever political winds blow against him or whatever the establishment tells him to do."

Campaigning in Sherlance County in the state's southeast Sunday, Duke Edwards hit back at Ellsworth.

"Mark Ellsworth is all about gimmicks and stunts," Edwards told the crowd at an apple festival in Cleland, a small agricultural town 100 miles southwest of Christen-Kerr.

"[Ellsworth] files frivolous lawsuits against the Nationalists and Jim McCaren. Lawsuits he knows have no chance of going forward or winning. He files them just to piss off the liberals and to make his hardline supporters happy. And then he lies to the voters and tells them all the 'wonderful' things he's done to help them. In reality, all Mark Ellsworth does is just fan the flames and build his own reputation with the far-right. He doesn't actually do anything meaningful that helps East Deschireans. It's all about Mark," said Edwards.

While the mainstream Conservative Party seems to be coalescing around Edwards, the hardline far-right appears to be rallying around Ellsworth.

Tim Hutsell, the former veteran and far-right activist, threw his support to Ellsworth, calling the attorney general "our only hope" to beat incumbent NAT Gov. Val Hennemott in December.

Businessman David McKinley, who has taken a hard stance against vaccines and government spending, has so far declined to endorse either Edwards or Ellsworth, saying he would support either one.

But the Grassadellia Conservative Union (GCU) has thrown its support to Ellsworth. The National Rifle Club (NRC) has also.

Moderate Conservatives fear Ellsworth's controversial style and his tendency to commit gaffes will hurt the party's chance of winning the governor's mansion.

"Mark Ellsworth is a buffoon. Everyone in the East Deschire Conservative Party knows it. They may not all say it, but they all know it. He's a buffoon. If he wins the primary, Val Hennemott will have a good chance of winning re-election. And this is a governor's seat that the Conservative Party should easily take over this fall," said Mark Cohn, a Conservative political operative who has worked on past campaigns for Phil Qwenberry and Jim Reebis. Cohn is not involved in any campaigns in the 2022 election season.

The more fervent Conservative voters fear an Edwards nomination, however.

The popular college basketball coach has never ran for office before, and up until last year, his political leanings were not even known. Many assumed Edwards was left-leaning.

"Duke Edwards is untested. He's unknown. He's uncertain. We don't know if he will adhere to Conservative values or not. If he wins, will he remain true to the Conservative cause? Or will he sell out to Nationalist and the liberal media?" said Doug Kennin, a Conservative consultant who has worked on past campaigns for Nancy Lindselli.

Polls have shown both men either even or ahead of Hennemott in a head-to-head fall match-up.

But it's unclear which candidate will fare the best during Tuesday's run-off, particularly in the state's western reaches, where neither candidate has roots or a well-spring of support.

"Duke is from Christen-Kerr, Mark is from Doylestown. Neither one has much connection with the western half of the state, so it will be interesting to see who does better on that side of the divide," said political science professor Dr. Don Ivanhoe from Merritt College in Derosa.

The Hennemott campaign hasn't publicly said much. The governor congratulated Ellsworth and Edwards on advancing to the run-off, but that was the only statement she or her campaign has released.

Sources close to Hennemott say she and her team are privately hoping the more bombastic Ellsworth wins the run-off election. Nationalists believe Ellsworth, with his divisive demeanor, will be easier to beat in December than the more tame Edwards.

But while Edwards is not as controversial or driven by political stunts, the coach is outspoken, frequently known to curse at press conferences and to avoid political correctness.

"Both of them (Ellsworth and Edwards) are outspoken and divisive. The difference is Ellsworth is seen as more unintelligent and simple-minded, while Edwards is seen as a little sharper and more normal," said one Conservative analyst, who asked to remain anonymous so as not to negatively affect their consulting business.

The Conservative Governors Association (CGA), headed by North Ceona Gov. Ty Jaimeson, has said it will vigorously support whoever wins the run-off election. However, sources within the CGA say that privately, Jaimeson prefers Edwards.

"No matter who wins, Val Hennemott is not going to have an easy path to re-election," said Dr. Ivanhoe. "The governor is a Nationalist in a Conservative-leaning state. She presided over COVID restrictions that negatively impacted the economy. And inflation is rampant right now. Those are difficult headwinds for any governor to contend with."

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East Deschire Primary Election Results -- Governor, Conservative Party Nomination

✔️Mark Ellsworth21.56%166,079
Duke Edwards17.47%134,600
Bill Engstrom16.54%127,387
Phil Qwenberry15.94%122,786
David McKinley14.29%110,109
Tim Hutsell14.21%109,444

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