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Davis in a concession statement congratulated both Miller and Trump.
“I’d like to congratulate Congresswoman Miller and President Trump on their victory tonight. This was a hard-fought campaign, and I wish her the best in representing the citizens of the 15th District,” he said.
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The two incumbents were lumped into the same district after new maps were drawn, forcing them to run for a seat that cuts across central Illinois.
Both cast themselves as staunch allies of former President Donald Trump. Miller, a vocal conservative, won the Trump endorsement, while Davis noted that he was a co-chair of Trump’s reelection campaign.
However, Davis garnered Trump’s ire after he did not object to certifying the 2020 election results and was one of 35 House Republicans to vote for a bipartisan commission to investigate the Jan. 6, 2021, riot on the Capitol.
At a rally in Mendon with former President Donald Trump, Miller called the Supreme Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade a “victory for white life.”
Miller’s spokesman said the Illinois Republican had intended to say the decision was a victory for a “right to life.” The line as delivered was out of step with the disproportionate impact the repeal of abortion rights will have on women of color.
Miller is running for reelection with the former president’s blessing. She had been invited on stage to speak by Trump, who held the rally in Mendon, Illinois, to turn out the vote ahead of the state’s Tuesday primary.
“President Trump, on behalf of all the MAGA patriots in America, I want to thank you for the historic victory for white life in the Supreme Court yesterday,” she said, drawing cheers from the crowd.
RELATED: IL Rep. Mary Miller calls Roe decision ‘victory for white life,’ spokesman later says she misspoke
Miller spokesman Isaiah Wartman told The Associated Press that it was “a mix-up of words.”
“You can clearly see in the video … she’s looking at her papers and looking at her speech,” Wartman said.
Her campaign noted that she is the grandmother of several nonwhite grandchildren, including one with Down syndrome.
The freshman congresswoman, who was among those who voted to overturn the results of the 2020 election, previously came under criticism for quoting Adolf Hitler.
“Hitler was right on one thing. He said, ‘Whoever has the youth has the future,'” Miller said in a speech last year, according to video posted by WCIA-TV. She later apologized after Democrats in Illinois called for her resignation.
“Mary Miller’s comments yesterday are just another part in a disturbing pattern of behavior she’s displayed since coming to Congress. This is why she uses the Biden basement strategy and refuses to answer questions or hold public events,” Davis said. “Whether it’s catering to the extremes, praising Adolf Hitler, having a convicted child sex offender serve as her personal driver, and now these comments, Miller has demonstrated she is not fit for public office. This is why it’s so important to vote in our Republican Primary on Tuesday and show the country Miller’s behavior is unacceptable.”
RELATED: Illinois Primary Election: Meet the candidates for governor, U.S. Senate, Congress and more
The rally came as some elements of the far right have pushed the “great replacement theory,” a racist ideology that alleges white people and their influence are being “replaced” by people of color. Proponents blame both immigration as well as demographic changes, including white birth rates.
During the rally, Trump took a victory lap for the Supreme Court’s bombshell ruling Friday ending the constitutional right to abortion. The three conservative justices he appointed all voted in favor.
He noted that in 2016, he promised to appoint judges who opposed abortion rights.
“Yesterday the court handed down a victory for the Constitution, a victory for the rule of law, and above all, a victory for life,” he told the crowd, which broke into a chant of “Thank you Trump!.”
Trump at the rally also endorsed Republican Darren Bailey, who has secured the GOP nominee for governor.
Davis Consession Statement
“I’d like to congratulate Congresswoman Miller and President Trump on their victory tonight. This was a hard-fought campaign, and I wish her the best in representing the citizens of the 15th District.
“It’s been the honor of a lifetime to serve the people of Illinois. I’m proud of the work our team has done for our constituents since 2013. Helping citizens cut through red tape and navigate the federal bureaucracy has always been one of my top priorities.
“We have delivered countless conservative policy solutions from historic tax cuts, student loan relief, farm programs, and investing in our transportation system.
“We’ve always worked to govern and make Washington work. As Republicans are poised to retake the House, it’s paramount that Republicans in Congress work to end dysfunction and deliver results for the American people.
“I look forward to campaigning with every Republican up and down the ticket across Illinois between now and November to ensure we take back our state and take back Congress.”
ABC News and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
