by Peter Mertz
DENVER, the United States, May 25 (Xinhua) -- The tiny population of the remote, western state of Montana on Thursday elected a Republican to the U.S. House of Representatives. But political experts say the result could be a warning signal to the Republicans on the 2018 mid-term election.
With 25,000 votes, technology executive Greg Gianforte, who faced a six-month jail term for assaulting a news reporter the day before the election, won a special election over Democrat Rob Quist, a folk singer wearing cowboy-hat and first-time candidate.
Gianforte, an outspoken Donald Trump loyalist, was called as a "good friend" by the president.
The seven-point win in the state was much smaller than Trump's 55-35 percent margin over Democrat Hillary Clinton in last year's presidential election.
"We have seen this now several times since the election -- close special elections in Republican strongholds," said Washington political insider David Richardson on Thursday.
"It's a clear sign that the tide has turned and that Americans don't like Trump's health care mess," Richardson, a house staffer in the 1980s, told Xinhua.
Republicans immediately said that the media would seize on the closeness of the vote as a repudiation of Trump, but the state was "red and forever red," a theme spoken at Republican victory parties on Thursday night.
Since 1952, Montana has only voted for two Democratic presidents: John Kennedy and Bill Clinton.
Meanwhile, a host of Republicans called for Gianforte to apologize for his "unacceptable" physical action that resulted in an unprecedented arrest warrant served hours before election day.
On Wednesday night, Gianforte assaulted Ben Jacobs, a reporter who tried to ask him about health care and was later sent to hospital.
A Fox TV News crew saw Gianforte "body slam" Jacobs to the ground, which resulted in assault charges filed by the local sheriff.
Gianforte must appear in court before June 7.
The Montana political blogs were on fire on Thursday night with many young conservatives supporting the violence against the news reporter.
But Republican Speaker of the House Paul Ryan said Thursday that Gianforte should apologize, noting that a physical altercation should never occur.
The "special election" was held to replace Ryan Zinke, President Trump's new secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior.
Democrats called the "single-digit" Republican win an increasingly obvious sign that the 2018 mid-term elections have been on track to go to the opposite political party, a historical common occurrence.
"If the Democrats take back the house in 2018, they will get chairmanships, which will allow them to conduct investigations that are moving slowly in committees controlled by Republicans," Richardson said.
Should the Democrats make up the current 23-seat vacancy they face in the 450-member U.S. House of Representatives, they will control a critical arm of the U.S. government.
Citing the recent allegations against Trump of tampering with a federal investigation, the control of congressional committees could be critical to the advancement of that cause.
"This could lead to the impeachment of the president, if the tampering allegations are proven and the Democrats gain control of the house," Richardson contended.
