beyond. dave brat topple be eric cantor despite seven terms in congress and greatly outspending his opponent. who exactly is dave brat? here s more about the unknown economics professor vaulted into the national political spotlight and shocked everyone in the process. the second highest ranking member of the u.s. house of representatives and a man many saw as a potential speaker, house majority leader eric cantor has lost his seat in congress. obviously we came up short. it was a mace many pundits thought cantor could not lose but he did. in a low turnout political primary, brat beat cantor by more than ten points. this is a miracle from god that just happened. brat won the republican nomination despite being outspent nearly 10 to 1.