The youngest member of the US House of Representatives just lost his seat in Congress.

       Rep Madison Cawthorn will not advance to November’s general election or even a June runoff after being defeated in Tuesday’s Republican primary by Chuck Edwards, a member of the North Carolina state senate. Mr Cawthorn conceded that he lost the race in a call to Chuck Edwards, according to his campaign.

       The result is a devastating blow to a prominent Republican who had the backing of Donald Trump as well as many grassroots figures in the GOP.

       Mr Cawthorn watched his defeat roll in from his campaign headquarters in his small hometown of Hendersonville, North Carolina. His defeat was the perfect foil for the victory of Ted Budd, the Trump-endorsed GOP candidate for US Senate in the state, who won his own primary handily.

       Mr Edwards, meanwhile, also watched results arrive from his watch party at a hotel in Hendersonville. The victory was in no small part due to the actions of his opponent.

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       Scandals plagued Mr Cawthorn’s campaign throughout 2022. He was accused of driving on a revoked license and cited for carrying a gun into an airport, and that doesn’t even begin to touch on his newly-erupted feud with Republican leadership. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy painted him as a liar after Mr Cawthorn alleged that his colleagues were doing cocaine and inviting him to orgies, and he was unable to secure the endorsement of a single member of North Carolina’s congressional delegation.

       His campaign was even opposed by the state’s soon-to-be-senior US senator, Thom Tillis, as well as a super PAC that leaked sexually explicit images of him in an attempt to discredit his image.

       Tuesday’s result is a sign that Donald Trump’s endorsement is not enough to carry a candidate with significant baggage past the finish line in every race. The former president urged his followers to “give Madison a second chance” in a semi-endorsement reissued on Monday ahead of the primary, but it was not enough to rally Mr Cawthorn’s supporters to the polls.