Joe Kent

Last updated

Joe Kent
Candidate Joe Kent.png
Kent in 2021
Personal details
Born1980 (age 43–44) [1]
Sweet Home, Oregon, U.S.
Political party Republican
Spouse(s)
​
​
(m. 2014;died 2019)​

Heather Kaiser
​
(m. 2023)​
Children2
Residence Yacolt, Washington
Education Norwich University (BS)
Website Campaign website
Military service
AllegianceFlag of the United States.svg United States
Branch/serviceFlag of the United States Army.svg  United States Army
Rank Chief warrant officer III

Joe Kent (born 1980) is an American far-right political candidate [2] [3] and former officer of the United States Army Special Forces. [2] [3]

Contents

After defeating incumbent Jaime Herrera Beutler in the primary, Kent was the Republican nominee in the 2022 election for Washington's 3rd congressional district, losing to Democrat Marie Gluesenkamp Perez in an upset. [4] During his campaign, Kent promoted various conspiracy theories, including the claim that the COVID-19 vaccines are "experimental gene therapy."

Kent is a candidate in the 2024 congressional election for the same seat, [5] receiving an early endorsement by the Washington State Republican Party (WSRP). [6]

He is the widower of Shannon M. Kent, a United States Navy senior chief petty officer and cryptologic technician who was deployed to Syria and killed in the 2019 Manbij bombing. He considers himself a non-interventionist, citing his military experience and the death of his wife.

Early life and military service

Shannon Kent was the wife of Joe Kent and was killed in the 2019 Manbij bombing. Shannon Kent.jpg
Shannon Kent was the wife of Joe Kent and was killed in the 2019 Manbij bombing.

Kent was born in Sweet Home, Oregon, and raised in Portland. [7]

Kent enlisted in the US Army at age 18 as an infantryman, having applied shortly before the September 11 attacks, and served 11 combat deployments. He served as an officer of the 75th Ranger Regiment and before serving in the United States Army Special Forces. [8] [9] [10]

in 2018, Kent left the Army and began working for the CIA. [10] He left that job after his wife, Shannon, was killed in the 2019 Manbij bombing. [11] Kent first time meeting Donald Trump was at Dover Air Force Base when Shannon's remains were being returned, coming to offer his condolences. [12] [2]

Political campaigns

2022 congressional campaign

Kent announced the launch of his campaign for Washington's 3rd congressional district on February 18, 2021; he cited incumbent Republican Representative Jaime Herrera Beutler's vote in favor of the second impeachment of Donald Trump as a factor in his decision to run. [13] His candidacy was endorsed by Donald Trump and numerous other prominent figures from the Republican Party's pro-Trump wing, including Michael Flynn and Matt Gaetz. [14] During his campaign, he was a frequent guest on Tucker Carlson Tonight , Steve Bannon's show Bannon's War Room, and various programs on One America News Network and InfoWars. [15]

On August 3, 2022, Kent finished second in the nonpartisan primary for the congressional race, advancing to the general election against Democratic candidate Marie Gluesenkamp Perez. Herrera Beutler finished third in the primary; she did not endorse Kent. [16] [17]

In what was widely considered a major upset, Kent lost the election to Perez. He subsequently said he would not concede until "every legal vote is counted". [18] [19] Following a recount, Kent conceded on December 21. [20]

2022 WA-03 Primary results by county .mw-parser-output .legend{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .legend-color{display:inline-block;min-width:1.25em;height:1.25em;line-height:1.25;margin:1px 0;text-align:center;border:1px solid black;background-color:transparent;color:black}.mw-parser-output .legend-text{} Gluesenkamp Perez 20-30% 30-40% Kent 30-40% Herrera Beutler 20-30% 2022 WA 03 Primary.svg
2022 WA-03 Primary results by county
  Gluesenkamp Perez
  •   20–30%
  •   30–40%
  Kent
  •   30–40%
  Herrera Beutler
  •   20–30%
Blanket primary results [21]
PartyCandidateVotes%
Democratic Marie Gluesenkamp Perez 68,190 31.0
Republican Joe Kent 50,097 22.8
Republican Jaime Herrera Beutler (incumbent)49,00122.3
Republican Heidi St. John35,21916.0
Republican Vicki Kraft 7,0333.2
Democratic Davy Ray4,8702.2
Independent Chris Byrd3,8171.7
Republican Leslie French1,1000.5
American Solidarity Oliver Black4560.2
Write-in 1420.1
Total votes219,925 100.0
Results by county Gluesenkamp Perez 50-60% Kent 50-60% 60-70% 2022 WA 03 General.svg
Results by county
  Gluesenkamp Perez
  •   50–60%
  Kent
  •   50–60%
  •   60–70%
2022 Washington's 3rd congressional district election [22]
PartyCandidateVotes%
Democratic Marie Gluesenkamp Perez 160,314 50.14
Republican Joe Kent157,68549.31
Write-in 1,7600.55
Total votes319,759 100.0

2024 congressional campaign

On January 11, 2023, Kent announced he would be running again for the same House seat in 2024, saying that Perez "votes in lockstep [with] the radical left's agenda that's crushing working families" in his announcement. [5] He is one of five candidates who have announced they will challenge Perez. [23]

On August 16, 2023, The Washington State Republican Party (WSRP) Central Committee announced the early endorsement of Kent in this election, following an endorsement by the Clark County Republican Party. [6] His political action committee raised $821,000 through the third quarter of 2023, drawing donations from more than three dozen states. [24]

Political views

Kent's political views align with the far-right in the United States. [2] [3]

Kent made false claims that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from Donald Trump a focus of his 2022 campaign. He labeled the perpetrators of the January 6 United States Capitol attack as "political prisoners" and spoke at a rally in defense of them organized by his top adviser. He supports impeaching Joe Biden and—in the wake of the FBI search of Mar-a-Lago — Merrick Garland. [4]

In a September 2022 debate against Perez, Kent said that he was unvaccinated and claimed that the COVID-19 vaccines are a form of experimental gene therapy. [25] [26]

Kent has said he supports school voucher programs and child tax deductions in addition to prioritizing energy independence. [14] [27]

Kent has labeled his political philosophy as "inclusive populism", with a spokesman stating that it "rejects racism and bigotry" while promoting an "America First agenda". [28] "If you’re a white nationalist or white supremacist, I have no time for you whatsoever" he said in an interview. [2]

He considers himself a non-interventionist, citing his military experience and the death of his wife. He said that he lost many friends and his wife due to "our ruling class - Republicans and Democrats - consistently [having] lied to the American people to keep us engaged in wars abroad". [29]

Contact with far-right groups

Kent's 2022 campaign was endorsed early on by prominent white nationalist commentator Nick Fuentes. Fuentes had partaken in a call with Kent discussing social media strategy; Kent later said that he had no further contact with Fuentes after the call and had not sought Fuentes's endorsement. [30]

Graham Jorgensen, a member of the neo-fascist organization Proud Boys, was employed as a consultant for Kent's 2022 campaign. Joey Gibson, founder of the far-right group Patriot Prayer, has also been linked to Kent; Gibson heavily promoted Kent's campaign on social media and spoke at a fundraiser for Kent, in which Kent praised Gibson for "defend[ing] this community when our community was under assault from antifa". [31]

In June 2022, Kent was interviewed by Greyson Arnold, a neo-Nazi YouTube streamer. [32] Kent also posed for a photograph with Arnold that Arnold then shared on social media. [28] A spokesman for Kent's campaign said that Kent was unaware of who Arnold was and assumed he was a local journalist. [33]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Washington's 3rd congressional district</span> U.S. House district for Washington

Washington's 3rd congressional district encompasses the southernmost portion of Western Washington. It includes the counties of Lewis, Pacific, Wahkiakum, Cowlitz, Clark, and Skamania; as well as a small portion of southern Thurston county.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jaime Herrera Beutler</span> American politician (born 1978)

Jaime Lynn Herrera Beutler is an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for Washington's 3rd congressional district from 2011 to 2023. The district is in southwestern Washington, lying across the Columbia River from Oregon's Portland metropolitan area. A Republican, Herrera Beutler previously served in the Washington House of Representatives. In 2010, she was elected to Congress, and went on to be re-elected five times.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 United States House of Representatives elections in Washington</span>

The 2016 United States House of Representatives elections in Washington were held on November 8, 2016, to elect the 10 U.S. representatives from the state of Washington, one from each of the state's 10 congressional districts. The elections coincided with the 2016 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate and various state and local elections. The primaries were held on August 2.

The National Democratic Redistricting Committee (NDRC) is a US political organization that focuses on redistricting and is aligned with the Democratic Party. It was founded in 2017 with the primary goal of stopping partisan gerrymandering and advocating for fair and transparent redistricting processes. The organization coordinates campaign strategy, supports redistricting reform, and files lawsuits against state redistricting maps.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 Republican Party presidential primaries</span> Selection of Republican US presidential candidate

Presidential primaries and caucuses of the Republican Party took place in many U.S. states, the District of Columbia, and five U.S. territories from February 3 to August 11, 2020, to elect most of the 2,550 delegates to send to the Republican National Convention. Delegates to the national convention in other states were elected by the respective state party organizations. The delegates to the national convention voted on the first ballot to select Donald Trump as the Republican Party's nominee for president of the United States in the 2020 election, and selected Mike Pence as the vice-presidential nominee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 United States House of Representatives elections in Washington</span>

The 2018 United States House of Representatives elections in Washington were held on November 6, 2018, to elect the 10 U.S. representatives from the state of Washington, one from each of the state's 10 congressional districts. The elections coincided with other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate and various state and local elections. All nine incumbents seeking re-election were re-elected, however the Democratic Party won the open-seat in the 8th District previously held by a Republican, improving from a 6–4 margin to a 7–3 margin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 United States House of Representatives elections</span> House election for the 118th U.S. Congress

The 2022 United States House of Representatives elections were held on November 8, 2022, as part of the 2022 United States elections during incumbent president Joe Biden's term. Representatives were elected from all 435 U.S. congressional districts across each of the 50 states to serve in the 118th United States Congress, as well as 5 non-voting members of the U.S. House of Representatives from the District of Columbia and four of the five inhabited insular areas. Numerous other federal, state, and local elections, including the 2022 U.S. Senate elections and the 2022 U.S. gubernatorial elections, were also held simultaneously. This was the first election after the 2020 redistricting cycle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 United States House of Representatives elections in Washington</span>

The 2020 United States House of Representatives elections in Washington were held on November 3, 2020, to elect the 10 U.S. representatives from the state of Washington, one from each of the state's 10 congressional districts. The elections coincided with the 2020 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate and various state and local elections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Groypers</span> Loose group of white nationalist and neo-Nazi activists, provocateurs, and internet trolls

Groypers, sometimes called the Groyper Army, are a group of alt-right, white nationalist, and neo-Nazi activists, provocateurs, and internet trolls. They are notable for their attempts to introduce alt-right politics into mainstream conservatism in the United States, their participation in the January 6 United States Capitol attack and the protests leading up to it, and their extremist views. They have targeted other conservative groups and individuals whose agendas they view as too moderate and insufficiently nationalist. The Groyper movement has been described as white nationalist, homophobic, nativist, fascist, sexist, antisemitic, and an attempt to rebrand the declining alt-right movement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina</span>

The 2022 United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina were held on November 8, 2022, to elect the seven U.S. representatives from the state of South Carolina, one from each of the state's seven congressional districts. The elections coincided with other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate and various state and local elections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Washington</span>

The 2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Washington were held on November 8, 2022, to elect the 10 U.S. representatives from the state of Washington, one from each of the state's 10 congressional districts. The elections coincided with other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate and various state and local elections. Going into this election, the Democratic Party represented seven seats, while the Republican Party represented three seats.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Derrick Van Orden</span> American politician (born 1969)

Derrick Francis Van Orden is an American politician, businessman, actor, and retired United States Navy SEAL who is the U.S. Representative for Wisconsin's 3rd congressional district. He is a member of the Republican Party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2024 United States Senate election in West Virginia</span>

The 2024 United States Senate election in West Virginia will be held on November 5, 2024, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of West Virginia. Primary elections took place on May 14, 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2024 Washington gubernatorial election</span>

The 2024 Washington gubernatorial election will be held on November 5, 2024. The top-two primary will be held on August 6.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brandon Williams (politician)</span> American politician (born 1967)

Brandon McDonald Williams is an American politician, farmer, and businessman serving as the U.S. representative for New York's 22nd congressional district since 2023. He is a member of the Republican Party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marie Gluesenkamp Perez</span> American politician (born 1988)

Kristina Marie Gluesenkamp Perez is an American politician and businesswoman. A member of the Democratic Party, she has been the U.S. representative for Washington's 3rd congressional district since 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2024 United States House of Representatives elections in Washington</span>

The 2024 United States House of Representatives elections in Washington will be held on November 5, 2024, to elect the ten U.S. representatives from the State of Washington, one from each of the state's congressional districts. The elections will coincide with the 2024 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate, and various state and local elections. The primary elections are scheduled for August 6, 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2024 Washington Public Lands Commissioner election</span>

The 2024 Washington Public Lands Commissioner election will be held on November 5, 2024. The top-two primary will be held on August 6.

References

  1. ↑ Lee, Lafayette (August 30, 2022). "Joe Kent: Our Generation's War". IM—1776. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Grisales, Claudia (November 7, 2022). "A Washington congressional district is weighing the election of a far-right candidate". NPR . Retrieved November 16, 2022.
  3. 1 2 3 Watson, Evan (October 6, 2022). "A closer look at the Trump-endorsed Republican candidate for US House seat in southwest Washington". KGW . Retrieved November 16, 2022.
  4. 1 2 McCausland, Phil (November 12, 2022). "Democrat Marie Gluesenkamp Perez defeats MAGA Republican Joe Kent, flipping key Washington House seat". NBC News . Retrieved November 16, 2022.
  5. 1 2 Sumrall, Frank (January 11, 2023). "Joe Kent announces 2024 House campaign against 'woke extremist'". MyNorthwest.com. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
  6. 1 2 Vance, Ken (August 8, 2023). "Washington State Republican Party Central Committee approves early endorsement for Joe Kent".
  7. ↑ Boddie, Ken (January 30, 2022). "Trump-backed candidate Joe Kent to challenge Jaime Herrera-Beutler". KOIN.com. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
  8. ↑ Skovlund, Joshua (February 2, 2024). "What's the difference between Army Rangers and Green Berets?". Task & Purpose. Retrieved June 1, 2024.
  9. ↑ "Meet Joe". Joe Kent. Retrieved March 18, 2024.
  10. 1 2 Weisman, Jonathan (October 15, 2022). "New Generation of Combat Vets, Eyeing House, Strike From the Right". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  11. ↑ "Federal panel dismisses claims questioning Joe Kent's job". opb. Retrieved February 22, 2024.
  12. ↑ "Opinion | My wife died fighting ISIS under Trump's orders. How he reacted won my respect". NBC News. September 5, 2020. Retrieved June 1, 2024.
  13. ↑ Vance, Ken (February 21, 2021). "US Army veteran Joe Kent throws his hat in ring for Washington's 3rd Congressional District seat". ClarkCountyToday.com. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  14. 1 2 Yaw, Claudia (September 7, 2021). "Joe Kent rides waves of endorsements at rally with Matt Gaetz". The Reflector. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
  15. ↑ Brunner, Jim (November 4, 2022). "Congressional candidate Joe Kent wants to rewrite history of Jan. 6 attack". The Seattle Times. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
  16. ↑ "August 2, 2022 Primary Results - CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT 3". Secretary of State of Washington. August 2, 2022. Retrieved August 4, 2022.
  17. ↑ Gutman, David (November 15, 2022). "How did Marie Gluesenkamp Perez pull off the upset of the year in Southwest WA?". The Seattle Times. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
  18. ↑ Brynelson, Troy (November 14, 2022). "Facing defeat, Joe Kent campaign looks to 'cure' challenged ballots". opb. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
  19. ↑ Graham, David A. (November 14, 2022). "The House Race That Shows Why Republicans Collapsed in the Midterms". The Atlantic. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
  20. ↑ "GOP's Joe Kent concedes Washington state Congressional race". AP NEWS. December 22, 2022. Retrieved January 14, 2023.
  21. ↑ "August 2, 2022 Primary Results - CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT 3". Secretary of State of Washington. August 2, 2022. Retrieved August 4, 2022.
  22. ↑ "November 8, 2022 General Election Results - CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT 3". Secretary of State of Washington. November 15, 2022. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
  23. ↑ "Washington's 3rd Congressional District election, 2024". Ballotpedia. Retrieved February 25, 2024.
  24. ↑ "Political drivel? Three years on, 'J6' remains a force in the WA GOP". The Seattle Times. January 6, 2024. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  25. ↑ Evan Watson (October 6, 2022). "A closer look at the Trump-endorsed Republican candidate for US House seat in southwest Washington". kgw.com. Retrieved March 24, 2023. Kent said the COVID-19 vaccine is "experimental gene therapy," that he opposes any vaccination requirements and wants to defund the FBI.
  26. ↑ Lanard, Noah (October 5, 2022). "Joe Kent's forever war". Mother Jones. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  27. ↑ Rantz, Jason (October 20, 2022). "Joe Kent advances to November, stresses energy, inflation as biggest immediate problems". mynorthwest.com. Retrieved March 18, 2024.
  28. 1 2 Slodysko, Brian (July 27, 2022). "GOP's links to extremism surface in congressional primary". AP NEWS. Retrieved January 14, 2023.
  29. ↑ La Corte, Rachel (October 12, 2022). "Washington House seat in play amid increased polarization". AP. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  30. ↑ Brynelson, Troy (March 7, 2022). "Congressional candidate Joe Kent distances from white nationalist amid social media spat". opb. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  31. ↑ Slodysko, Brian (July 27, 2022). "GOP's links to extremism surface in congressional primary". AP. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
  32. ↑ Brunner, Jim (October 12, 2022). "WA Republican Party hired white nationalist podcaster, then fired him". The Seattle Times. Retrieved March 3, 2024.
  33. ↑ Kaczynski, Andrew; Steck, Em (September 30, 2022). "GOP congressional candidate Joe Kent's ties to white nationalists include interview with Nazi sympathizer". CNN. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.