Conservative journalist Laura Loomer has been labeled an Islamophobe as well as a conspiracy theorist and a QAnon enthusiast.
She’s been banned by Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, PayPal, Uber, Lyft, Clubhouse, and others. In 2019, she was even booted from the Conservative Political Action Conference.
Yet despite that resume, the 28-year-old could be the next GOP representative from Florida’s 11th Congressional District.
The Floridian reported on Monday that Loomer is outpacing incumbent Republican Rep. Daniel Webster in fundraising.
Loomer raked in more than triple what Webster did in the first quarter of 2022. She received $169,750, compared to Webster’s $52,743.
That helped Loomer overtake the incumbent in overall fundraising during the campaign.
She’s now pulled in $496,815, while Webster received $413,122.
Webster, however, is sitting on about $326,000 in cash on hand. On the other hand, Loomer has banked about $141,000.
Webster has represented the district since 2017. It is one of the most conservative in Florida, stretching north from Orlando to Ocala, and spanning west to the Gulf Coast.
Before that, Webster represented the 10th Congressional District from 2011 to 2017.
He has one of the longest resumes in Florida politics. He was first elected to the Florida Legislature in 1980 and served for 28 years, including becoming the first Republican speaker of the Florida House in state history when the GOP took over the Legislature in the 1996 elections.
Webster is a likely shoo-in if he can get past Loomer. In each of the last three elections, he has beaten his Democratic rivals by a 2-1 margin.
Yet, as The Floridian noted, “Much like former President Donald Trump did in 2016, Republican Congressional candidate Laura Loomer continues to buck the GOP establishment with her run for Congress against Rep. Daniel Webster.”
“The large fundraising gap could be a sign of a surge of support for Loomer in Florida’s very conservative 11th Congressional District,” The Floridian continued. “Florida’s CD 11 is expected to become significantly more Republican than it already is once the final map is signed off on.”
The primary support for Loomer is curious, to say the least. Webster is no left-leaning squish like supposed Republican Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger.
He sports an “A” grade from the NRA, has a “0” rating from the LGBT advocates at the Human Rights Campaign, and gets a “D” from NORML, the group that advocates legalizing pot.
Webster supported former President Donald Trump’s tax cuts but did not vote against Trump’s impeachment in January 2021.
He was reprimanded by Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for “election subversion” because he endorsed Texas’ challenge to the 2020 election outcome in Pennsylvania.
Yet Loomer, who is best known for attacking radical Islam in defense of Israel, has worked as a journalist for Project Veritas, Rebel News, and the Alex Jones’ now-defunct Infowars. She has been endorsed by Rep. Matt Gaetz and former Trump adviser Roger Stone.
Trump himself cheered Loomer on when she ran for Congress in 2020 against Democratic Rep. Lois Frankel. Loomer took 39 percent of the vote in the district wholly within Palm Beach County where Republicans made up only 27 percent of registered voters.
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