Charles Herbster.Photo: Scott Olson/Getty
Republican Charles Herbster — who in recent weeks has facedseveral allegations of groping women, but still secured the endorsement of former PresidentDonald Trump— lost Nebraska’s Republican primary for governor on Tuesday.
In the end, University of Nebraska Regent Jim Pillen won the state’s Republican nomination for governor,the Associated Press reports.
In April, eight women — including a Republican state senator — toldThe Nebraska Examinerthat Herbster, then a leading contender in the GOP primary race, had touched them inappropriately or forcibly kissed them at public events.
Weeks later, a second woman publicly identified herself as an alleged victim of Herbster. Elizabeth Todsen, a former state chair of the College Republicans, told the Examiner that she was 23 years old when she attended the same 2019 fundraiser, held for the local Republican party.
While at the dinner, Todsen said Herbster greeted those seated at her table, shaking hands with the men but pulling her into what she called “an aggressive” embrace.
“It was more than a hug,” Todsen told the outlet. “His hand went to my butt. It was a grab. At that point, I tried to push away, but I couldn’t. It was like he knew that I couldn’t say anything.”
The politician himself has suggested on social media that the claims — six of which the Examiner corroborated with at least one eyewitness — are the result of the “the establishment machine within my own party.”
He called the women’s stories “100% false,“according toThe Omama World-Herald. (Herbster has not responded to PEOPLE’s request for clarification or further comment.)
Former President Trump doubled down on his endorsement of the candidate, despite the allegations. He also appeared at a recentrallyfor Herbster, saying the Republican had been “badly maligned and it’s a shame.”
“It would have been easy for me to say, ‘I’m not gonna come,’ " Trump, who himself has beenaccused of sexual assaultin the past (which he also denies), told the crowd at the Nebraska rally. “I defend my people when I know they’re good.”
While Trump’s endorsementhas helped candidates elsewhere, it wasn’t enough for Herbster, who told a crowd of supporters in hisconcession speech Tuesdaythat he was at the White House with the Trump family in 2020 when it became clear that Trump had lost that race. “So I do know how it feels not to be the victor,” Herbster said.
source: people.com
