Convicted Jan. 6 Rioter Loses West Virginia Congressional Bid

Derrick Evans, who went to jail for participating in the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol, lost his longshot bid for a U.S. House seat in West Virginia on Tuesday.

He was defeated by three-term incumbent Rep. Carol Miller (R-W.Va.), who steered clear of Evans’ conviction and instead accused him of being a secret Democrat who is insufficiently supportive of former President Donald Trump.

Evans, 39, pleaded guilty to a felony civil disorder charge after live-streaming himself storming the Capitol building alongside hundreds of other Trump supporters in hopes of preventing Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential election certification. He served three months in prison.

“We’re taking this country back whether you like it or not!” Evans shouted at police officers defending the Capitol building.

During his sentencing hearing, Evans expressed regret over his role in the attack. “I’ve let down myself, I’ve let down my community and, most importantly, I’ve let down my family,” Evans told the judge at the time.

The next day, he took it all back. “I’m never going to regret standing up to tyranny and standing up for the people who believe in me and standing up for the future of my children,” he said during a West Virginia radio interview.

Evans even solicited campaign funds for his congressional bid by touting his sentence in jail. “I did time in Prison for Trump,” read one of his fundraising emails, according to NBC.

West Virginia’s 1st Congressional District is solidly Republican, so Miller is heavily favored to win reelection to a fourth term in the fall.

Evans wasn’t the only candidate connected to the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection who ran for office this year. In Maryland, Harry Dunn, a former U.S. Capitol Police officer who was on duty on Jan. 6, ran in the crowded race for the Democratic nomination in the state’s vacant 3rd Congressional District. He, too, came up short.