Former Halo composer Marty O'Donnell loses election, then gets absolutely bodied by his opponent: 'The fight is finished'

UNITED STATES - SEPTEMBER 10: Nevada Republican congressional candidate Marty O'Donnell speaks at the Republican Midterm Convention at the American Airlines Center in downtown Dallas on Thursday, September 10, 2026. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images) — (Image credit: Getty Images - Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

It was a big night for Democrats in the US, as a "blue wave" saw the party retake control of Congress in what CNN called "a stunning blow to Trump." Among the night's big losers is former Halo composer Marty O'Donnell, whose run for Congress ended in a spectacular, crushing defeat—and then a dunk from his congressional opponent that can only be described as brutal.

O'Donnell began his political career in 2024, saying he "never wanted to be a politician" but felt compelled to do so by what he described as the deterioration of the US: "Big tech, big pharma, big media, big whatever—all trying to control big government in Washington DC."

That effort didn't work out so well—he placed fourth in the 2024 Republican primary for Nevada's third congressional district—but he tried again in 2026, this time with the support of US president Donald Trump, which O'Donnell enthusiastically welcomed despite previously calling Trump an "idiot." Well, winds and tides change.

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Anyway, O'Donnell won the 2026 Republican primary, and then got in the ring with Susie Lee, the Democrat incumbent who's held the seat since 2019. It did not go well for him.

Chart showing Susie Lee defeats Marty O'Donnell in Nevada 03 congressional election 2026 — (Image credit: NBC)

Hey, that happens sometimes—you think you got it, and then it turns out you don't actually got it at all.

But O'Donnell's Trump-toned campaign, complete with dire warnings about open borders, Marxism and the woke left, accusations of corruption leveled against Lee, embrace of the far-right commentariat, and occasional asides to remind everyone that he's absolutely not mad about being fired by Bungie, did not exactly endear him to his political opponents, or very many other people, really.

So after dismantling O'Donnell, the re-elected Lee—who seemed to largely ignore O'Donnell's rhetoric during the campaign—sent him off into the sunset with this:

Enjoy your retirement @MartyTheElder https://t.co/vH8KwKWrdlNovember 4, 2026

I'm just a bystander on the scene—I'm not even American, much less a Democrat cheerleader. But holy cow. You can see that crater from orbit.

O'Donnell did not take Lee's farewell particularly well, which led to even more smoke in the comments.

Susie Lee has a lot of class. And it's all low. Not as low as the voter turnout for you, big dawg — (Image credit: Marty O'Donnell (Twitter))

I think this is one of those times were you have to just take it on the chin and move along. We'll see how that goes.

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.