This, July 14, 2014, file photo shows Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., in Olathe, Kan., as he speaks at rally for Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback.WASHINGTON – Three-term Republican Sen. Pat Roberts edged out Milton Wolf in Kansas’ primary Tuesday night as mainstream conservatives dealt another blow to the tea party movement. A GOP businessman swamped a first-term Michigan congressman, upending his re-election bid.
With 79 percent of the precincts reporting, Roberts held a 48 percent to 41 percent advantage over Wolf, a radiologist and distant cousin of President Barack Obama who had argued that the incumbent wasn’t conservative enough. Two other primary candidates combined for 11 percent of the vote.
The Senate’s establishment is on a roll, with incumbents prevailing in Texas, Kentucky, South Carolina and Mississippi, though it took six-term Sen. Thad Cochran two tries before defeating Chris McDaniel, who is challenging the outcome.
Add Kansas to the list.
“Tonight, we reaffirmed what we all knew. We are Kansas-loving conservative Republicans, and we are in charge of our own future,” Roberts told his backers. Alluding to his stumbles, the senator said, “My posse did not flinch, even though there were times when their candidate – me – stepped on our message.”