Joe Kent, center, speaks during a “Justice For J6” rally in September 2021, calling for better treatment for those accused of participating in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Joe Kent , a right-wing Republican who is vying for a rematch against Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-Wash.), received $8,600 in campaign donations from an accused Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol rioter facing felony and misdemeanor charges.
The Department of Justice announced earlier this month that it was charging Salisbury, Maryland, resident Carlos Ayala with civil disorder, a felony, as well as several misdemeanors, including knowingly entering a restricted building, and knowingly engaging in disruptive conduct designed to interfere with government business. Ayala’s arrest prompted him to resign from his post as a Republican member of the Maryland State Board of Elections.
Ayala, who was wearing a painter’s mask and America-flag hoodie, stands accused of climbing over police barricades and poking his “We the People” flag at a U.S. Capitol Police officer guarding an entrance to the U.S. Capitol building. Later, when the door to the building was forced open, Ayala allegedly threw the PVC pipe that had served as his flagpole into the building where it struck an officer.