Michigan ‘Lie Back and Enjoy’ Rape Guy Loses Race By 12 Points, Flipping Red District Blue

I think we could all use a small dose of good news this week: Robert “RJ” Regan, the Republican candidate who said he told his daughters to “lie back and enjoy” rape, lost his bid for the Michigan state house to a Democratic woman on Tuesday night. Thank fucking god.

The funniest part of all this? Regan lost an area that went for Trump twice by 11 points and hasn’t elected a Democrat in 30 years. Carol Glanville, who previously worked in education and as a city commissioner, won the special election by 52-40 percent margin. Glanville says her race is an example of bringing in independent voters to the Democratic party at the local level. “What are these moderate Republicans going to do? Where are they going to go? They’re looking for a home. And right now, you know, we’re able to offer that in the Democratic Party, a place where people can feel like they’re being heard and being taken care of, which is what representation is about,” she told Jezebel.

A lot has happened since Jezebel first introduced you to Regan—the right to an abortion might be gone by the summer and a congressman just can’t stop trying to commit crimes—so I want y’all to remember why I’m taking joy in this one small race.

Back in early March, Regan was on a livestream about the the 2020 presidential election results. Regan attempted to butt into the conversation, but people talked over him. However, Regan thought he had such an excellent point to make that he continued. “You know, having three daughters, I tell my daughters, well, if rape is inevitable, you should just lie back and enjoy it,” he said. “That’s not how we roll. That’s not how I won this election. We go right at it.”

Jezebel reached out to Regan for comment on his loss, but once again, I got his incredibly embarrassing voicemail that includes a recording of Ronald Reagan’s Berlin Wall speech. After hearing Regan call himself “Robert Regan, the Big Kahuna,” I was told his mailbox is full. I have texted him for comment on his loss, because I genuinely have questions.

When asked about the “lie back and enjoy it” comment that catapulted her race into the national spotlight, she was surprised. “I was stunned. There’s so many disturbing things about that whole situation. How did that even come into his mind? Regardless of the context of the conversation or however he tried to explain it away, why was that the thought in your mind and then that you gave voice to it? I mean, there’s a lot going on there that it is stunning and disturbing,” Glanville told Jezebel of Regan’s March rape comments. “It lit a fire in me too. When I saw that he had won the primary and then I heard that video, I said he cannot win, that cannot happen.”

Glanville will represent the suburbs of Grand Rapids until the end of the year. Then, the district lines will shift as a new map goes into effect. She has filed to run in the new district. The primaries are in August and election in November.

Regan has filed to run in the new district, too, so I’m sure I’ll be listening to the Ronald Reagan voicemail again soon.

“We have three repeat candidates, none of the three were successful this time around,” she told Jezebel. “It’s going to be pretty much a replay. So I just kind of dig in and get back to work. It’s not over.”