'National villain' MAGA pastor running out of time to secure GOP nomination: analysis

A MAGA-aligned pastor who prayed with Donald Trump earlier this month is no closer to securing a GOP nomination, a political analyst has suggested.

Jackson Lahmeyer, an evangelical pastor in Owasso, Oklahoma, has kept himself in the public eye by spouting claims about Martin Luther King Jr.'s political leanings and offering COVID vaccination exemption forms to those who donate to his church. The controversial figure has been backed by notable MAGA figureheads and former Trump allies such as ex-New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and ex-Trump strategist Roger Stone, but this may not be enough for Lahmeyer to secure a GOP nomination.

Lahmeyer announced his candidacy for Congress at the Tulsa County Republican Party Headquarters on March 24, and is running against a selection of GOP candidates more experienced than him.

The Tulsa Congressional seat is up for grabs as Rep. Kevin Hern, who currently holds the seat, is planning to run for the vacant Senate seat formerly held by Markwayne Mullin, who has been promoted to head of the Department of Homeland Security.

Slate writer Molly Olmstead has suggested that, despite the backing of his campaign from key Trump campaign figures, Lahmeyer has a tough battle ahead.

"Lahmeyer only has a few months to secure the Republican nomination, and he is running against state-level politicians with a history of actual governance," Olmstead wrote. "If he wins, he’ll undoubtedly be another strong voice for Christian nationalism in MAGA.

"If he doesn’t, he’ll almost certainly find another way to stay in the public eye. Lahmeyer is out to prove a truth of the MAGA era: The spirit of the right-wing media attention-seeker is unkillable."

But Lahmeyer's controversial nature may be a stumbling block for his campaign, as Olmstead warns the vaccine slips he had previously offered to donors of his church may come back to haunt him.

She wrote, "Among those who follow the jostling for power within the MAGA movement, Lahmeyer is a familiar name. He first came to national attention during the COVID pandemic, when he offered to sign religious exemption forms for the vaccine for anyone willing to donate at least $1 to his church, Sheridan Church. (This, he said, was the cost of joining the church.)

"The idea of a pastor selling vaccine exemption slips without knowing if someone had any kind of genuine religious reason for their opposition to the vaccine stirred up enough outrage to make Lahmeyer a national villain."