An incredibly close race in Virginia was one of the highlights of Tuesday night’s races, which also included contests in Georgia and Oklahoma.
Observers had been closely monitoring the Republican Party primary for Rep. Bob Good’s seat in Virginia’s 5th Congressional District. The race turned into one of the most tumultuous primaries of the cycle so far, as Donald Trump and Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) sought to make Good the first incumbent to lose to an outside challenger. But as of Tuesday night, the race was still very close, with Good and his rival separated by hundreds of votes.
Meanwhile, Democrats struggled with their own tough primary in Virginia, while Rep. Tom Cole (R) fended off several primary challengers for the GOP nod in Oklahoma.
Here are five takeaways from Tuesday night’s primary:
Trump’s revenge attempt ends in nail biting
Good, chairman of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, was seen by many as a dead man heading into his primary against the state of Virginia. Sen. John McGuire on Tuesday night, especially as Good clashed with Trump.
But as midnight approached, the candidates were tied, with the race too close to call. If Good ultimately wins, it would be a huge surprise and an embarrassing defeat for both Trump and McCarthy.
The incumbent angered Trump when he endorsed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for the Republican presidential nomination last year. Although Good later supported Trump when DeSantis left the race, the former president argued that support came too late.
As a result, Trump threw his support behind McGuire, who also gained the support of the McCarthy Majority Committee (PAC) after Good voted to remove the former House speaker from office last year.
It’s unclear who will ultimately prevail, with some delayed mail-in ballots and a possible recount later this week adding to the uncertainty. Race results may not be known for days.
What is clear, though, is that Good’s primary turned into one of the most tense and memorable contests of the cycle so far.
A secret confrontation in the Senate is set
Ret. Navy Captain Hung Cao cruised to victory in the Virginia Senate GOP primary, easily defeating four other Republicans.
Cao will face incumbent Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) in November, a race seen as an uphill battle for Republicans. The nonpartisan Cook Political Report rates the seat as “solid Democratic.”
Still, Republicans are encouraged by President Biden’s signs of weakness in the community, also raising the possibility of a negative vote turnaround.
Defeating Kaine will not be an easy task, however. In addition to serving in the Senate since 2013, Kaine also has governor of Virginia, lieutenant governor and mayor of Richmond on his resume. Additionally, he served as chairman of the Democratic National Committee and was Hillary Clinton’s running mate in the 2016 presidential election.
But Republicans are optimistic about Cao, a familiar face in Virginia politics. He challenged Rep. Jennifer Wexton (D-Va.) in Virginia’s 10th Congressional District in 2022, but lost after the district became even more blue-friendly following redistricting.
Republicans point to recent polls conducted in Virginia showing a closer-than-expected race between Biden and Trump. A Fox News poll released earlier this month showed the two tied at 48 percent. Additionally, the average poll from The Hill’s Decision Desk headquarters shows Trump leading Biden by a narrow margin of 0.2 percent.
The polls are likely to be alarming for Democrats, who have taken Virginia to the presidential level since former President Obama won the state in 2008. But Republicans say the polls show there are opportunities for Trump, and by extension Cao, in the state. .
An ugly Democratic primary comes to an end
Virginia State Senator Suhas Subramanyam (D) defeated 11 other candidates in the Democratic primary to replace Wexton in Virginia’s 10th Congressional District.
Wexton supported Subramanyam, giving him momentum heading into the crowded primary. The intraparty race featured several well-known Virginia Democrats, including former Speaker of the House of Delegates Eileen Filler-Corn (D), State Senator Jennifer Boysko (D), and former Virginia Secretary of Education Atif Qarni.
But on Tuesday the race was between Subramanyam and Del. Dan Helmer (D), with Subramanyam defeating Helmer 30.3% to 26.7%.
The race has turned particularly ugly in recent days after allegations of sexual harassment surfaced against Helmer. He denied the accusations.
Subramanyam will face Republican Mike Clancey in November. Democrats have an advantage in the district, which includes several Washington, D.C. suburbs and suburbs. Wexton was reelected in the district by more than six points in 2022 and Biden won the district by 19 points in 2020.
Another Jan. 6 candidate falls
A candidate convicted of a misdemeanor related to the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol has fallen in a Georgia runoff election seen as the latest test of voters’ willingness to support a candidate linked to the insurrection.
Chuck Hand, who pleaded guilty to unlawfully demonstrating at the Capitol on Jan. 6, came in second in last month’s early primary, alongside fellow Republican Wayne Johnson, a former Trump administration official.
But Johnson won a comfortable double-digit victory in Tuesday’s top-two race and will face 16-term Democratic Rep. Sanford Bishop in November.
Hand is one of the few candidates tied to January 6th who have sought congressional seats this cycle, more than three years after the Capitol riots — though they have lost in primary contests so far this cycle.
Still, political experts say the support for their candidacies — like the 35 percent Hand got on Tuesday — signals that some in the Republican Party are ignoring the Jan. 6 convictions, especially as Trump praises the “J6 warriors.” ” throughout the campaign and rejects his own legal convictions. battles as politically motivated.
Both parties are struggling with divisions
Tuesday’s primaries revealed the divisions that exist within the Republican and Democratic parties.
In Virginia’s 5th District, conservatives and Republicans were divided on their support for Good and McGuire. While Trump and McCarthy were united in their quest for revenge against Good, the incumbent congressman received support from other lawmakers, including Reps. Chip Roy (R-Texas) and Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) and even former strategist -Trump boss Steve Bannon.
Virginia Democrats also had their own contentious primary in the 10th District that pitted Democratic figures in the state against each other. Former Gov. Ralph Northam (D) supported Filler-Corn in the race, while Wexton threw his support behind Subramanyam.
But Virginia wasn’t the only state to see intraparty divisions. In Oklahoma, Rep. Tom Cole (R) easily defeated businessman Paul Bondar by double digits. Bondar ran to Cole’s right, campaigning for Biden’s impeachment, a tougher immigration policy and cutting financial support for Ukraine. Bondar outperformed Cole during the primary, thanks to a $5 million loan he provided to his campaign. Cole has held the position for more than 20 years.
This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story
