Meijer does not regret impeachment vote, even after losing primary

Michigan Republican Rep. Peter Meijer said he did not regret voting to impeach then-President Donald Trump, even after he lost his primary contest to a challenger whom the former president endorsed.

“I would rather lose office with my character intact than stay reelected having made sacrifices of the soul," Meijer said in an interview, according to Politico.

Meijer became the second Republican who supported impeachment to lose his primary after South Carolina Rep. Tom Rice soundly lost his race to the Trump-backed state Rep. Russell Fry. Trump endorsed Meijer's opponent, John Gibbs.

“It certainly has been a chaotic period, a period where I’ve seen the importance of leadership and the importance of people being willing to say this is wrong,” Meijer said after his loss, “but also the heavy political cost that that carries.”

Four other impeachment Republicans have opted against seeking reelection, Politico noted, while Washington Republican Reps. Dan Newhouse and Jaime Herrera Beutler appear poised to continue to the November general elections in part due to Washington's open primary system. Their races however, remain uncalled as of press time.

Most prominent among the remaining impeachment Republicans is Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney, who faces dismal polling ahead of the Aug. 16 primary race. Cheney served as the House Republican conference chair but the party ousted her following her impeachment vote.