Trump to hold rally in Wyoming to support challenger to Liz Cheney

Former president and much of the Republican establishment has lined up against congresswoman as she has continued to vocally criticise him

Former president Donald Trump will hold a rally in Wyoming at the end of the month to support a primary challenger to Representative Liz Cheney, his foremost critic in the Republican Party.

Mr Trump will hold a rally in support of Harriet Hageman, whom he endorsed last year, in Casper on 28 May. Wyoming holds its primary of 16 August.

Ms Cheney has emerged as the president’s top critic within the House Republican conference. She and nine other Republicans voted to impeach Mr Trump for his role in the 6 January insurrection last year. Initially, it looked like she would walk away unscathed, as she survived a vote to remove her as chairwoman of the House Republican Conference, a position in leadership below Minority Leader and Whip.

Her repeated criticisms of the GOP and Mr Trump and refutations of the Big Lie that the election was stolen led to House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy supporting an effort to oust Ms Cheney. In turn, House Republicans voted to remove her and replace her with Representative Elise Stefanik of New York. Similarly, Mr McCarthy has endorsed Ms Hageman.

But Ms Cheney – who represents Wyoming’s at-large district that her father, former vice president Dick Cheney once represented – has not tempered her criticism. Rather, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi nominated her to serve on the House select committee investigating the riot that was put together after Republican Senators blocked the creation of a bipartisan commission. She now serves as vice chairwoman of the committee and is one of only two Republicans, alongside Illinois Represenative Adam Kinzinger.

Mr Kinzinger opted not to seek re-election after Illinois Democratic legislature put him in a member-on-member primary with a more Trump-friendly Republican. Similarly, Represenatives Anthony Gonzalez of Ohio, John Katko of New York and Fred Upton of Michigan chose not to run for another term as Mr Trump targeted Republicans who crossed him.