• Jake Ellzey defeats fellow Republican for vacant House seat
• Susan Wright hoped to succeed husband who died of Covid-19
Jake Ellzey of Texas won a US House seat on Tuesday night over a fellow Republican rival backed by Donald Trump, dealing the former president a defeat in a test of his endorsement power since leaving office.
Ellzey’s come-from-behind victory over Susan Wright, the widow of the late Representative Ron Wright, in a special congressional election runoff near Dallas is likely to be celebrated by Trump antagonists who have warned against his continued hold on the GOP. Trump backed Wright from the start and had made one last attempt to give her a boost with a telephone rally on Monday night.