South Carolina Republican who voted to impeach Trump faces primary challenge from Turning Point USA contributor Graham Allen

Army veteran, conservative media personality, and former BlazeTV host Graham Allen is running for Congress in South Carolina to unseat a GOP incumbent who voted to impeach former President Donald Trump.

Rep. Tom Rice (R-S.C.), who represents the Myrtle Beach area, was one of 10 House Republicans who surprised both his colleagues and his constituents by voting to impeach Trump after the violence at the Capitol on Jan. 6.

Allen, who served two tours in Operation Iraqi Freedom and is a contributor to Turning Point USA, said Rice's vote to impeach Trump was a betrayal of the voters in South Carolina's 7th Congressional District.

"Tom Rice abandoned his duty to represent the conscience of the voters of his district when he sided with Nancy Pelosi to support the sham impeachment of President Donald J. Trump. South Carolina's 7th Congressional District voters overwhelmingly endorsed President Trump's America First agenda twice at the ballot box. But Congressman Rice betrayed their confidence when he caved to the far-left mob and their enablers in Big-Tech and the mainstream media," Allen said in a statement announcing his candidacy.

"Sadly, it is all too often we see politicians like Tom Rice, who, after nearly a decade in office, tend to lose touch with their voters and begin to substitute their interests over that of their constituents. The fact is we can no longer count on Congressman Rice," he continued. "We don't know when he'll cave to Pelosi and Biden next as they throw open our borders, make it easy to cheat in our elections, and tax and spend us into oblivion while working to remake America into a socialist nation."

Allen, who resides outside the district in Anderson, S.C., is campaigning as a strong supporter of Trump, championing issues like election integrity, border security, defending the First and Second Amendments, and opposing President Joe Biden's economic agenda.

Just two days after announcing his run for Congress, Allen reported raising over $100,000 for his campaign.

He joined a crowded field of Republican candidates challenging Rice, who remains unapologetic for his vote to remove Trump from office.

In January, Rice explained in a statement that "any reasonable person could see the potential for violence" after Trump gave a speech to his supporters on Jan. 6 repeating claims that the 2020 presidential election was stolen and that Congress was illegitimately certifying the Electoral College results for Joe Biden.

"Once the violence began, when the Capitol was under siege, when the Capitol Police were being beaten and killed, and when the Vice President and the Congress were being locked down, the President was watching and tweeted about the Vice President's lack of courage," Rice said. "For hours while the riot continued, the President communicated only on Twitter and offered only weak requests for restraint."

"I have backed this President through thick and thin for four years. I campaigned for him and voted for him twice. But, this utter failure is inexcusable."

On Wednesday, Rice was one of 35 House Republicans who broke ranks with Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and supported a bill to create a "9/11-style" commission to investigate the Jan. 6 riot.

"[The] Capitol was ransacked, police were beaten and five people were killed. I was shocked and angered. As members of Congress, we took an oath to defend our democracy. I believe we must fully know the facts and causes of the event in order to secure our Capitol and ensure our democracy remains intact for future generations," Rice said in a statement after his vote.

According to Federal Election Commission filings, Rice is sitting on a campaign war chest of more than $1.3 million to fund his re-election campaign.