Donald Trump endorses state Rep. Russell Fry in Myrtle Beach congressional race
Former President Donald Trump on Tuesday endorsed South Carolina state Rep. Russell Fry in his bid for Myrtle Beach’s seat in Congress.
“Russell Fry, who is all in for the Palmetto State, has my Complete and Total Endorsement. VOTE TOM RICE OUT NOW!” Trump wrote in a statement.
Trump’s endorsement marks a turning point and could change the race dramatically. One candidate, conservative media personality Graham Allen, dropped out Friday evening after speaking with Trump.
Fry, 37, was originally elected to the state House of Representatives in a special election in mid-2015.
An attorney by trade, Fry has risen rapidly through South Carolina’s GOP political ranks and served as his party’s chief legislative whip last year, a key role in which he helped gather support from other lawmakers for the party’s priorities.
Fry was ultimately able to claim success in helping to push through South Carolina’s strictest ban on abortions to date, as well as a looser open-carry gun law.
Fry joined the SC-7 District race last summer, saying the Pee Dee and Grand Strand regions needed a representative in Congress who would stand alongside Trump. He said he wouldn’t have voted to impeach Trump for his role in the Jan. 6 riot — as incumbent Rice did — and more recently called the 2020 presidential election “rigged” in a Facebook video.
In his endorsement message, Trump called Rice a “coward who abandoned his constituents” and said he should be “thrown out of office ASAP.” He also referred to his second impeachment as “impeachment hoax #2.”
“America First Champion Russell Fry has been a leading fighter on Election Integrity, is pro-Life, pro-God, pro-Gun and, very importantly, pro-LOW Taxes,” Trump said. “As Chief Majority Whip in South Carolina, he led the charge in passing the Open Carry Act, and also succeeded with the Religion is Essential Act. Russell loves our Military and our Vets—he is strong on Border Security and Crime.”
In a statement Tuesday, Fry had this to say about the Trump endorsement:
“I’m honored to receive the President’s endorsement and am humbled by the faith he has placed in me to defeat Tom Rice, defend the America First agenda, and take back this seat for the people of the Grand Strand and Pee Dee,” Fry said.
Trump’s endorsement in the Pee Dee congressional race was expected, political observers have said, because of Rice’s vote to impeach Trump last year.
Following the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, Rice and nine other Republicans joined Democrats in voting to impeach Trump for his role in the violence.
Rice has since said the GOP should move away from Trump the person, but should still embrace his policies. Rice has made that a centerpiece in his bid for re-election.
But Rice’s vote to impeach Trump angered many conservatives across South Carolina, and he was swiftly censured for his vote. Trump, in a November statement, called for “good and smart” challengers to oust Rice and the other Republicans who voted to impeach him.
He said in a statement Tuesday that he was “glad” Trump had endorsed someone.
“All the pleading to Mar-a-Lago was getting a little embarrassing,” he said in a statement to WBTW News 13. “I’m all about Trump’s policy. But (an) absolute pledge of loyalty to a man that is willing to sack the Capitol to keep his hold on power is more than I can stomach.”
Rice didn’t return messages from The Sun News seeking additional comment Tuesday.
Trump’s endorsement of Fry didn’t come as good news for everyone.
“He pi----- his endorsement away,” Horry County school board chairman Ken Richardson, who had been vying for that endorsement, said Tuesday.
Richardson told The Sun News that while he would have liked to receive Trump’s endorsement, he would continue his campaign without it.
He argued that Trump’s base was unhappy with his endorsement of Fry and that those residents would ultimately support him.
He also said he’s received donations in the hours since the endorsement from those who were specifically unhappy with Trump’s choice.
“It ain’t changed one thing with me, we’re moving along,” Richardson said. “We would have liked to have had it but we never expected it. (Fry) is kind of the establishment guy, along with (Rice). I knew they weren’t going with me.”
Richardson pledged to stay in the race and predicted he could win more support outside of Myrtle Beach than Fry or Rice.
Local businesswoman Jeanette Spurlock, another candidate in the race, posted a video on Facebook Tuesday afternoon saying she, too, would stay in the race.
“Let me just promise you one thing,” she said. “Nothing is going to stand in my way to continue this journey to fight for you and fight for future generations.”
Trump’s endorsement of Fry, who some local conservatives see as similar to Rice, rankled some local Trump supporters.
“He’s messing in local politics and he shouldn’t because he doesn’t know much about local politics,” said Peggie Andrews Bushey, a local conservative who helps moderate the “Horry County Conservative Republicans” Facebook page.
Bushey, a Trump supporter, said he’s made “bad decisions” in the past and that she’s looking for a “constitutional” candidate.
She believes Trump listened to “establishment” Republicans at the state level when picking Fry over other candidates. She counts herself among the ranks of residents who view Fry and Rice as similar candidates.
“We don’t want another Rice,” she said.
For other Trump supporters, though, Trump’s blessing means they’ll be backing Fry, even if he wasn’t their first choice.
Don Bowne, who started a “Red Hats for Trump” group in Horry County, said he trusts Trump’s decision.
“If you care about Tom Rice doing what he did then I can’t see where, when the time comes, (Republicans) wouldn’t vote for Russell over a Democrat,” he said.
“Everyone comes with a little bit of baggage but if Russell Fry is good enough for Donald Trump then Russell Fry is good enough for Don Bowne.”
This story was originally published February 1, 2022 at 1:21 PM with the headline "Donald Trump endorses state Rep. Russell Fry in Myrtle Beach congressional race."
