Matt Gaetz to Face Last-Minute Republican Primary Challenger

Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) will face a primary challenger in August after former naval aviator Aaron Dimmock filed to run in Florida’s First Congressional District on April 26, the day of the qualifying deadline.

Mr. Dimmock, a Republican from Missouri who works at a Florida university, is the only Republican challenger running against Mr. Gaetz in 2024, according to the Florida Division of Elections. The congressman wrote on social media that he believes Mr. Dimmock was pushed to run by former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), whom Mr. Gaetz ousted in October 2023 with a motion to vacate supported by seven other Republicans and all House Democrats.

The incumbent congressman called Mr. Dimmock a “puppet” of Mr. McCarthy in an April 29 post on the social platform X.

The Epoch Times reached out to Mr. McCarthy for comment.

Mr. Gaetz, 41, has clinched every Republican primary in Florida’s First District with more than 60 percent of the vote since 2018 after narrowly winning a plurality in 2016 with 36.1 percent of the vote. He also holds a considerable cash advantage over Mr. Dimmock, with more than $2 million cash on hand as of March 31, according to Federal Election Commission (FEC) data.

Mr. Dimmock’s LinkedIn profile indicates he was recently the director of the Missouri Leadership Academy and, before that, a senior adviser to the U.S. Department of the Navy.

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Mr. Gaetz said he was “excited to welcome Missouri-based DEI instructor Aaron Dimmock to the campaign” in a statement to The Epoch Times, referring to diversity, equity, and inclusion.

“Aaron is not in Kansas anymore. This is Trump Country. Our pronouns are USA and MAGA. I’m a proud Trump Republican. I stand shoulder to shoulder with President Trump to defeat Joe Biden, secure our border, restore our economy, and support our veterans.

“I’ll never stop fighting for President Trump or for the people of the First Congressional District,” he said.

In an email to The Epoch Times, a spokesperson for Mr. Gaetz shared apparent screenshots from Mr. Dimmock’s LinkedIn page, which feature posts supporting “BlackLivesMatter” and “diversity and inclusion” from 2020 and 2021, when he was a director at Chapman & Co. Leadership Institute, a workplace training company.

The Epoch Times reached out to Mr. Dimmock for comment.

Gaetz’s Past Victories

Despite facing primary challengers in every previous congressional election, Mr. Gaetz would have gone straight to the general election this year until Mr. Dimmock filed and qualified at the last minute.

Gay Valimont is running uncontested for the Democratic ticket and has just over $24,000 cash on hand, according to March 31 FEC filings. Her website describes her as a “gun violence prevention activist” who is devoted to “improving public safety.” Ms. Valimont was previously an athletic trainer for Emory Sports Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia.

“I’m Gay Valimont—officially YOUR DEMOCRATIC NOMINEE against Matt Gaetz. Let’s send a message to Matt: Florida deserves better,” she said in an April 27 post on X.

Florida’s First Congressional District covers the western portion of the state’s Panhandle.

Mr. Gaetz beat Democrat Rebekah Jones with 67.9 percent of the vote in 2022 and Democrat Phil Ehr with 64.6 percent of the vote in 2020, which saw a “no party affiliation” challenge from candidate Albert Oram.