- Carl Paladino, who drew flak for praising Hitler, received 48% of the GOP vote in his district.
- Paladino lost his Republican House primary to New York GOP chair Nick Langworthy on Tuesday.
- Despite his controversial remarks, he's received strong support from MAGA-aligned politicians.
New York GOP candidate Carl Paladino, who once called Adolf Hitler "the kind of leader we need today," lost his primary race on Thursday but still earned a significant share of the vote in his district.
The real estate executive had sought to represent his state's 23rd Congressional District but narrowly lost to his opponent, New York GOP chair Nick Langworthy. According to The New York Times, Palladino received 48% of the votes against Langworthy's 52%.
Paladino's history is riddled with scandals because of racist and offensive remarks he made, including some directed at Michelle Obama.
In one notorious case, he forwarded pornographic emails to his associates containing images of bestiality and derogatory caricatures of then-President Barack Obama back in 2010.
In June, the real estate developer came under fire again when a year-old radio interview of him resurfaced. In it, he praised Adolf Hitler for how the World War II Nazi leader "aroused the crowds."
"That's, I guess, I guess that's the kind of leader we need today. We need somebody inspirational. We need somebody that is a doer, has been there and done it," Paladino told WBEN radio.
Despite the controversy surrounding him, Paladino has received strong support from high-profile GOP members. He was endorsed by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and fellow New Yorker Rep. Elise Stefanik, the third-highest ranking Republican.
Donors also gave Paladino's campaign $1.5 million, compared to the $370,000 raised by Langworthy.
On Tuesday evening, Paladino refused to concede defeat, with his spokesperson saying: "We are seeing a number of statistical irregularities in a number of counties that we will be looking in the coming days. We want every single legal vote to count."
However, he released a statement on Wednesday saying it was "time to move onto the next chapter of my life," according to Buffalo-based NBC affiliate WGRZ.