Voters in several states went to the polls on Tuesday, weighing in on key election contests in Oregon, Georgia, Kentucky and Idaho.
The November showdowns were solidified into a series of closely watched House races as President Biden and former President Trump sailed to victory in their respective parties’ primaries in Kentucky and Oregon.
At the same time, voters in California chose Republican Vince Fong in a special election to finish out the remainder of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s (R) term in the House.
Here are five takeaways from Tuesday night’s contests:
Protest votes highlight frustration with Biden and Trump
Both presidential candidates won more delegates in their respective primaries in Kentucky and Oregon, but they also saw protest votes that underscore Americans’ discontent with the looming November rematch.
Trump’s victory in the red-leaning Kentucky race was tempered by persistent protest votes against his former rival Nikki Haley, who dropped out of the race in March.
Haley won about 6 percent of the vote in the Bluegrass State’s primary, with 99 percent of precincts reporting at the time of publication. Another 4% voted “not committed”.
The numbers follow notable numbers for Haley in other states, signaling ongoing frustration with the former president among some members of the Republican Party. Haley received about 20% of the vote in last week’s primaries in Maryland and Nebraska, and nearly 10% in West Virginia.
A “half-hearted” effort also undermined Biden’s victory in Kentucky, siphoning off about 18 percent of Democratic primary votes as of publication. A combined 11 percent went to Biden’s opponents, Marianne Williamson and Rep. Dean Phillips (Minn.), who dropped out of the race.
Biden saw “disengaged” protests in several states as progressives expressed frustration with the administration’s handling of the Israel-Hamas war. “Uncommitted” has won 28 delegates so far, according to the DDHQ tracker, a number dwarfed by Biden’s tallies but still notable.
Organizers in Oregon, where “uncommitted” is not a formal voting option, alsopushed for voters to write “uncommitted”.
Holders have a good night
Tuesday was a good night for starters in several important contests.
In Kentucky, Republican Rep. Thomas Massie fended off primary challengers for his seat in the state’s 4th Congressional District, even after a super PAC aligned with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) worked to unseat him.
In Georgia, Rep. Lucy McBath (D) knocked out two primary competitors for her seat in the Peach State’s 6th Congressional District.
Meanwhile, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, the prosecutor leading an investigation into former President Trump’s efforts to interfere with the 2020 election results in Georgia, won her primary on Tuesday, as did the judge overseeing the case won re-election.
Willis defeated attorney Christian Wise Smith in his first election since launching his high-profile investigation. She is expected to face a Republican challenger in the fall.
At the same time, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee rejected a challenge to keep his seat, avoiding complications that could have arisen in the Trump case if his caseload had been transferred to a successor.
And Georgia Supreme Court Justice Andrew Pinson was also reelected, fending off a challenge from former Democratic Rep. John Barrow, who had sought to bring the issue of abortion to the forefront.
Establishment Democrats breathe a sigh of relief in Oregon
The Democratic establishment’s pick for Oregon’s 5th Congressional District won a competitive primary on Tuesday, raising hopes that the party can flip the seat in November.
Democratic state Rep. Janelle Bynum, who had the support of the party’s House campaign arm, defeated Jamie McLeod-Skinner, the party’s unsuccessful 2022 nominee.
Last cycle, McLeod-Skinner defeated centrist former Rep. Kurt Schrader (D) in the primary, only to narrowly lose to her Republican rival, Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer.
The seat, which the nonpartisan politically challenged Cook Political Report classifies as a toss-up, is now considered one of several that could help decide control of Congress in the fall.
The party establishment rallied around Bynum, who was generally seen as a stronger candidate. Bynum has won support from Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek (D) and EMILY’s List, a group that supported McLeod-Skinner two years ago. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) added Bynum to its coveted “Red to Blue” program and touted that the Democrat defeated Chavez-DeRemer in previous state legislative races.
A well-funded candidate beats another with name recognition
In another closely watched race in Oregon, Oregon state Rep. Maxine Dexter (D) emerged as the winner of a competitive Democratic primary for outgoing Rep. Earl Blumenauer’s (D-Ore.) House seat.
Dexter faced Multnomah County Commissioner Susheela Jayapal, the older sister of Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wa.), and six other Democrats for the seat.
Although Jayapal grabbed headlines early on, thanks in part to her progressive sister’s name tag, Dexter raised large amounts of money in the final months of the race, including from pro-Israel donors.
Not even endorsements from people like Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (DN.Y.) and Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) were enough to pull Jayapal over the finish line, with progressives suffering one of the few notable defeats in the Beaver State.
Dexter is the favorite to succeed Blumenauer in November in the solidly blue neighborhood.
A Warning to Democrats About Crime
The other big loss for progressives came in Portland-centered Multnomah County, where progressive District Attorney Mike Schmidt trailed.behind his main challengeralthough the race had not yet been called at the time of publication.
Schmidt faces a challenge from within his own office, Senior Deputy District Attorney Nathan Vasquez, who ran as a tough-on-crime candidate in a race that highlighted growing tensions around public safety and criminal justice.
The prosecutorial race comes as Oregon sees growing concerns about drug decriminalization efforts andincreasinglack of housing. Schmidt, who took office in 2020 after the police killing of George Floyd sparked protests in Portland, has focused on progressive criminal justice reforms.
And while Vasquez has the support of six law enforcement unions in Multnomah County, Schmidt has the support of Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum and former governor Kate Brown (D), as reported byOregon Public Broadcasting.
If Schmidt loses re-election, the race will likely be seen as a wake-up call to Democrats about how to handle the crime issue, which Republicans tried to put front and center before November, just as Democrats sought to emphasize the issue of abortion.
This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story
