Congrats to Rand Paul and the followers of his family of nutjobs!
Paul wins Ky. Sen. primary in test of tea party
By ROGER ALFORD and BRUCE SCHREINER, Associated Press Writers Roger Alford And Bruce Schreiner, Associated Press Writers 2 hrs 12 mins ago
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Rand Paul defeated Republican establishment favorite Trey Grayson in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate, a closely watched race that was a test of the tea party movement's strength.
Paul, the son of former presidential candidate U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, on Tuesday gave a tea party activist a key win in a statewide election that could embolden the fledgling political movement in other states. With 99 percent of precincts reporting, Paul was leading with 59 percent to Grayson's 35 percent.
"It's just a tremendous mandate for the tea party," Paul said. "It cannot be overstated that people want something new; they don't want the same old, same old politicians and I think they think the system is broken and needs new blood."
Paul, a 47-year-old Bowling Green eye surgeon, had never before run for office and turned to the Internet fundraising model used by his father to pay for his campaign. Grayson stayed competitive drawing heavy financial support from traditional GOP donors inside Kentucky.
The Kentucky election was being watched around the country, especially after tea party activists helped to defeat three-term Sen. Bob Bennett in Utah and forced Florida Gov. Charlie Crist to abandon the GOP to make an independent run for the Senate.
