A conservative Republican wins a stunning upset in a Georgia House race By JOHN FUND

Special elections to fill vacant House seats are usually fought over local concerns, but often they have national overtones. The stunning result of a Georgia race last week is a case in point.

Because no Democrat finished among the top two candidates in last month's primary, the runoff pitted two Republicans against each other to succeed Rep. Charlie Norwood, who died in February. Poorly funded physician Paul Broun Jr. scored a shocking 50.4% victory over former state Sen. Jim Whitehead, the establishment's consensus favorite. Columnist Robert Novak says Dr. Broun's victory has "terrified those incumbent Republican House members who had thought themselves safe for re-election in 2008" primaries. The pro-free market Club for Growth, which helped knock off at least one pro-spending GOP House incumbent in a 2006 primary, should feel encouraged by Dr. Broun's victory.

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