The Michigan retiree who “humiliated” President Donald Trump by beating his endorsed candidate even after dropping out of the race won a host of new fans Wednesday after his hand-written letter to a “Dear FEC Inspector” went viral.
Tom Smith, a retired General Motors engineer, quit his own congressional campaign and still managed to win a swing Michigan district Republican primary Tuesday with about 50.4% of the vote.
Amir Hassan, a Navy veteran and former federal law enforcement officer whom Trump had given a “Complete and Total Endorsement” in July, won just 33.2%.
Anti-abortion activist Al Lemmo, whom Smith backed after suspending his own bid on July 16, finished third with 16.4%.
Hassan’s defeat is a rare ballot-box loss for a Trump-endorsed House candidate this cycle, with some observers calling it a “strong signal” of trouble ahead for the president’s endorsement record.
It also matters for control of the chamber, as Michigan’s 8th District is one of 13 nationwide that voted for Trump in 2024 while electing a Democrat to the House.
Smith will now face first-term Rep. Kristen McDonald Rivet, who won the seat by nearly 7 points and whose race Cook Political Report rates “lean Democrat.”
After Smith’s surprise victory made national news, CNN journalist Patrick Svitek shared a hand-written note he’d sent to the Federal Election Commission.
The note explaining that “Tom Smith for Congress” was a late entry that had raised only $1,850 through June 30, and would therefore wait until the next deadline to file a report. It’s signed “Thomas J. Smith, Candidate.”
But it was the postscript that raised eyebrows.
“P.S. I could not file this form electronically because I have had no success logging in and have not been able to get a response from the help desk,” Smith scribbled.
The reaction was immediate and crossed party lines.
“I have never seen this before in my entire life,” wrote MAGA commentator Ryan Girdusky.
“We need to make this guy a star,” added right-wing attorney Will Chamberlain, senior counsel at the Article III Project.
Conservative strategist Liz Mair wrote that “Tom Smith is all of the Boomers, struggling with web forms,” while congressional aide Aaron Fritschner opined that “the postscript really ties the note together.”
Tom Smith, the candidate who dropped out of the #MI08 Republican primary but is still poised to defeat Trump-endorsed Amir Hassan, sent this handwritten note to the FEC less than a month ago: pic.twitter.com/xllPk5ZwTH — Patrick Svitek (@PatrickSvitek) August 5, 2026
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