Republican wins U.S. election 1 day after being charged with assault

Republican multimillionaire Greg Gianforte won Montana's only U.S. House seat on Thursday despite being charged a day earlier with assault after witnesses said he grabbed a reporter by the neck and threw him to the ground.

Gianforte, a technology entrepreneur, defeated Democrat Rob Quist to continue the GOP's two-decade stronghold on the congressional seat. Democrats had hoped Quist, a musician and first-time candidate, could have capitalized on a wave of activism following President Donald Trump's election.

• Republican candidate charged with misdemeanour assault of reporter

Instead, the win reaffirmed Montana's voters support for Trump's young presidency in a conservative-leaning state that voted overwhelmingly for him in November.

Gianforte was a strong favourite throughout the campaign and that continued even after authorities charged him with misdemeanour assault on Wednesday. Witnesses said he grabbed Ben Jacobs, a reporter for the Guardian newspaper, and slammed him to the ground after being asked about the Republican health-care bill.

'I made a mistake'

Gianforte dropped out of sight after he was cited by police and ignored calls on Thursday by national Republicans for him to apologize to the reporter.

Montana politician apologizes for attacking reporter

7 years ago

Duration 0:46

Greg Gianforte makes statement during election victory speech

He emerged only at his victory celebration Thursday night, where he said he accepted responsibility for the incident. "Last night I made a mistake and I took an action I can't take back and I am not proud of what happened," Gianforte told the crowd. "I should not have responded the way I did and for that I am sorry."

The last-minute controversy unnerved Republicans, who also faced close calls this year in the traditionally Republican congressional districts in Kansas and Georgia. A runoff election is scheduled for next month in Georgia between Democrat Jon Ossoff and Republican Karen Handel after Ossoff fell just short of winning outright.

Quist told supporters that he called Gianforte to congratulate him on his win and to urge him to represent all Montanans. "I know that Montanans will hold Mr. Gianforte accountable," Quist said Thursday night.

Ebullient Trump supporter

Gianforte showed lukewarm support for Trump during his unsuccessful run for governor in Montana last fall but did an about-face and turned into an ebullient Trump supporter after he started campaigning for the congressional seat vacated by Republican Ryan Zinke, when he was tapped by Trump to serve as Interior Department secretary.

Gianforte urged Montana voters to send him to help Trump "drain the swamp," brought in Vice-President Mike Pence and first son Donald Trump Jr. to campaign for him and was supported by millions of dollars of ads and mailers paid for by Republican groups.

But the theme of the election shifted Wednesday night when Jacobs walked into Gianforte's office as he was preparing for an interview with Fox News.

In an audio recording posted by the Guardian, the reporter asks the congressional candidate about the Republican's health care bill, which was just evaluated hours earlier by the Congressional Budget Office.

"We'll talk to you about that later,"Gianfortesays on the recording, referring Jacobs to a spokesman.

When Jacobs says that there won't be time,Gianfortesays "Just" and there is a crashing sound.Gianforteyells, "The last guy whocame here did the same thing," and a shaken-sounded Jacobs tells the candidate he just body-slammed him.

"You just body-slammed me and broke my glasses," Jacobs says.

"Get the hell out of here,"Gianfortesays.

'I'm sorry, Mr. Jacobs'

Gianforte's campaign issued a statement Wednesday blaming the incident on Jacobs. But on Thursday night, Gianforte apologized both to Jacobs and to the Fox News crew for having to witness the attack. "I should not have treated that reporter that way and for that I'm sorry, Mr. Jacobs."

It had been unclear if Gianforte's assault charge would impact the race. About a third of eligible voters in Montana had already cast their ballots in early voting, and others said it didn't influence their vote.

Shaun Scott, a computer science professor at Carroll College in Helena, said the assault charge was barely a factor in his decision.

"If you have somebody sticking a phone in your face, a mikein your face, over and over, and you don't know how to deal with the situation, you haven't really done that, you haven't dealt with that, I can see where it can ... make you a little angry," Scott said Thursday.

Big money

Quist, a popular 69-year-old singer and cowboy poet who was the front man for the Montana's Mission Mountain Wood Band, was helped by money that poured in from across the U.S. as Democrats seek to capture congressional seats that would have been considered safely Republican a year ago.

But Gianforte also benefited from millions of dollars spent on ads and mailers by Republicangroups like the Conservative Leadership Fund.

Gianforte campaigned as a gun-loving Montanan endorsed by the National Rifle Association to build his credibility among hunting enthusiasts and to motivate gun rights activists to vote. He echoed the Republican Party mantras of cutting taxes, beefing up the military and securing the country's borders.

Montana is a conservative-leaning state that became even more so after voters last November overwhelmingly supported Trump, voted in Republican majorities in the state Legislature and elected Republicancandidates to four of five statewide elected positions, leaving Gov. Steve Bullock as the only Democratic statewide elected official.