Former GOP Rep. Liz Cheney, who lost her seat in Congress to Trump-backed challenger, to teach at UVA

Former Wyoming GOP Rep. Liz Cheney is joining the University of Virginia's Center for Politics following her ouster from Congress by a Trump-backed candidate last year.  

Cheney lost her congressional seat last year after she incurred the wrath of former President Donald Trump, who backed a primary challenger who ousted the one-time number 3 Republican in Congress.

Her loss was a stark sign of the grip the former president still holds over his party, as Republicans who disagree with Trump have found the party increasingly inhospitable.

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What will Cheney do?

Cheney will serve as a professor of practice for UVA in an inaugural appointment. She will teach through the fall 2023 semester, according to a press release. 

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Her duties include holding university-wide lectures and serving as a guest lecture and contributing to the center's politics research. 

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What is Cheney saying?

“I am delighted to be joining the UVA Center for Politics as a Professor of Practice. Preserving our constitutional republic is the most important work of our time, and our nation’s young people will play a crucial role in this effort," said Cheney.

"I look forward to working with students and colleagues at the Center to advance the important work they and others at the University of Virginia are doing to improve the health of democracy here and around the world." 

Why did Cheney lose her seat?

Cheney lost the Wyoming primary in August to Trump-backed Republican Harriet Hageman last year, after Trump retaliated against Cheney for voting to impeach Trump in the aftermath of the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol insurrection.

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Cheney served as chair of the House Republican Conference–the third highest GOP post in the House—until May 2021. But she was removed from the position after Republicans booted her from leadership for excoriating Trump's involvement in the Jan. 6 insurrection.  

As vice chair of the Jan. 6 committee investigating Trump's role in the insurrection, Cheney continued her public persona as the most prominent Republican critic of the former president.