PENSACOLA, Fla. – The Republican primary for Florida’s 1st Congressional District is shaping up to be a rematch between Rep. Matt Gaetz and the man he ousted, former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

No, McCarthy is not on the ballot. But a political committee he controls has spent about $3 million to attack Gaetz, alleging that he paid minors for sex and used illegal drugs while supporting Gaetz’s opponent, former Navy pilot Aaron Dimmock.

This election cycle, it may not be money well spent – Gaetz has easily defeated his opponents in the primary since being elected to Congress from one of Florida’s most conservative districts. But ahead of Tuesday’s primary, Gaetz is getting a taste of what to expect when he runs for governor in two years, when Gov. Ron DeSantis leaves office after two terms.

“Kevin McCarthy has specifically said he is spending millions to denigrate me here to prevent a future run for governor. I have said many times that I have no plans to run for governor. I like my job,” Gaetz said recently after a campaign appearance in Pensacola.

The election campaign has become particularly brutal. McCarthy’s PAC has taken out ads saying that “witnesses” said he had sex with a 17-year-old escort during a trip to the Bahamas with a donor and other supporters. “Our daughters are never safe with the real Matt Gaetz,” a spokesman says at the end of the ad.

Gaetz led a group of eight far-right congressmen who ousted McCarthy last year, plunging the House into weeks of chaos as he tried to replace the ousted speaker. Gaetz is not the only one of the eight McCarthy targeted. McCarthy gave up his California seat after losing the speakership. Representative Nancy Mace of South Carolina also survived a primary against a McCarthy-backed opponent.

The House Ethics Committee has long been investigating Gaetz’s conduct. The Justice Department also investigated the allegations related to the Bahamas trip. No charges have been filed and Gaetz continues to maintain his innocence.

McCarthy said Gaetz was the catalyst for his removal because McCarthy refused to drop the ethics investigation.

“Matt Gaetz tried to pressure me to stop an ethics complaint that had been filed four years earlier. That was illegal. I’m not going to do that,” McCarthy said recently on “Real Time with Bill Maher.”

Gaetz and his supporters portray Dimmock as a McCarthy-selected soldier of fortune who moved from Missouri just to challenge Gaetz. But Dimmock says he has never met McCarthy and never discussed the campaign with him. And although he recently moved from Missouri and still works from home as a state employee, he said he was simply returning to an area he first had ties to 28 years ago when he attended Navy flight school.

“My mother and brother both live here. My aunt and uncle live here. Three of our four children were born here,” Dimmock said.

The reason he decided to challenge Gaetz was because no other Republican had come forward and he knew the primary was his only chance to defeat the congressman. The winner will face Democrat Gay Valimont in November, but the conservative district tends to vote overwhelmingly Republican in general elections.

“I thought a person of character and integrity needed to enter the race. No current incumbent at the local or state level was willing to do that,” Dimmock said. “There was no way this person, who has demonstrated his behavior repeatedly over time, was going to get a free pass.”

While Gaetz has his loyal supporters, Dimmock says other Republicans are embarrassed by his behavior and the ethics allegations. Gaetz made a name for himself nationally by inciting liberals with partisan rhetoric and steadfastly supporting former President Donald Trump.

Dimmock acknowledges that defeating Gaetz will be difficult in a district where his family is politically influential. Gaetz’s father is former Senate President Don Gaetz and the younger Gaetz was previously an influential state representative.

However, he said voters appreciated his participation in the race.

“They say, ‘Thank you for running and giving us an alternative. He was so embarrassing that we really need someone else. How can we help your campaign?'” Dimmock said. “And how many? Who knows. But we’ll see.”

Gaetz didn’t seem concerned.

“I’m facing an unprecedented barrage of negative advertising funded by Kevin McCarthy,” Gaetz said. “I’m going to outspend more than three to one, but I’m going to win better than two to one because people in Washington, California and Missouri don’t quite understand the connection I have with the people of Northwest Florida,” Gaetz said.

Like Trump, the congressman’s loyal supporters do not care about the allegations against him.

“Dimmock is funded by McCarthy and this is just dirty politics. Gaetz just talks about the issues,” said 61-year-old Jill Torkelson, who wore a “Make America Great Again” hat at his campaign rally in Pensacola. “There is definitely a vendetta at play. I just don’t trust McCarthy.”