In Tennessee, freshman Republican Rep. David Davis lost his primary last night, apparently in large part because his opponent linked him to Big Oil.
Davis is the first sitting Tennessee congressman in 40 years to lose in a primary. He was beaten by Johnson City Mayor Phil Roe, who accused Davis of accepting money from industry PACs, backing offshore drilling legislation, and “selling out” to Big Oil.
Davis has yet to concede, though tallies find Roe 570 votes ahead. Roe will face Democrat Rob Russell in November; the district leans strongly Republican, and Roe is expected to win.
UPDATE: TPM points out that Davis was in D.C. this week for the “Republican Uprising,” even while votes were being cast back in his district yesterday. He sent out this press release touting the pro-drilling protest and his role in it. Clearly he thought this would be a winning issue for him back home.
UPDATE II: Here’s the television ad on oil that Roe was running against Davis:
