One-time QAnon conspiracy theorist Marjorie Taylor Greene has won a House seat, according to race calls by NBC, CNN, and Decision Desk. Her victory marks the first time an open supporter of the bizarre pro-Trump conspiracy theory will hold a position in Congress.
“THANK YOU to the people of NW Georgia for choosing me to fight for them in Washington, DC!” she tweeted after her win late Tuesday.
Greene easily carried Georgia’s heavily conservative 14th Congressional District as the Republican nominee. Greene didn’t even face organized opposition on the ballot, with her Democratic opponent dropping out of the race and leaving the state amid a divorce.
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Greene posted frequently in 2018 about QAnon, the anti-Semitic conspiracy theory that imagines that a cabal of top Democrats sexually abuses and tortures children and that Donald Trump will soon put a stop to it with mass arrests and executions of his political enemies. The FBI has rated QAnon as a potential domestic terror threat, and the conspiracy theory has inspired murders and child kidnapping plots, among other crimes.
In an August interview with Fox News, Greene claimed she had left QAnon in 2018 to follow “a different path,” claiming she lost faith with the mysterious “Q” figure after Republicans lost the midterm elections that year. But Greene continued to tweet positively about QAnon after the 2018 midterm losses, raising questions about her supposed disaffection with QAnon.
Greene’s bid initially provoked consternation even amongst some Republicans, with Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) declaring that the conspiracy theory had no place in Congress. Republican leaders in the House initially denounced Greene over anti-Semitic and anti-Muslim remarks.
But top Republicans, including Donald Trump and Sen. Kelly Loefler (R-GA), supported Greene in the general election. And the House Republicans’ campaign arm contributed $5,000 to her bid, marking official support from GOP leaders.
Greene isn’t the only QAnon-friendly candidate on the ballot. QAnon supporters in Delaware and Oregon have secured Republican nominations for longshot Senate bids.
