The biggest question on Tuesday’s primary was whether Democrats would be able to get Republican voters to choose weak nominations for the general election.
In Illinois, the Democrats’ largest and most sustainable investment succeeded, but in Colorado, Republicans selected candidates who did not have nominal primary support from the entire aisle, holding several general elections that are expected to be very competitive.
Elsewhere, far-right candidates have reshaped Republican politics down into Illinois ballots, while incumbents who do not face ethical issues have won. And the Nebraska special election was much closer than anyone expected.
Here are five excerpts from Tuesday’s race in eight states.
Democratic interference in the Republican primary elections leads to results … sometimes.
Democrats have determined that it is much easier to win a general election if you can choose your opponent – especially if that opponent is an extreme right-wing Republican who can easily be portrayed as an extremist.
So Colorado and Illinois tried to help such candidates.
Such intervention is not a new phenomenon – it became known in the race for the Senate in Missouri in 2012 – but Democrats used the risk strategy this year to support a series of underfunded far-right candidates fighting against the Republican establishment’s favorites. greater threat to Democrats in November.
On Tuesday, Democrats learned that it is possible to raise the wrong Republican if he already has a functioning campaign, but that they can do nothing of almost nothing.
In Illinois, Gov. JB Pritzker, a billionaire Democrat, spent $ 35 million to stop Mayor Richard K. Irwin of Aurora, a moderate Republican, while nominating Darren Bailey, a far-right state senator who once promised to oust Chicago from the state.
Mr. Bailey has campaigned for more than a year and has had his own billionaire patron, conservative megadonor Richard Wichline. Mr. Pritzker did such a good job of killing Mr. Irwin that the mayor placed a distant third, more than 40 percentage points behind Mr. Bailey.
“Tonight, JB Pritzker won the Republican primary for governor here in Illinois,” Mr. Irwin said in a rebate speech. “He spent a historic amount of money to choose his own Republican opponent, and I wish Darren Bailey everything.
But the same tactic didn’t work in Colorado, where a shady Democratic group spent nearly $ 4 million attacking Joe O’De, a construction manager who backed some abortion rights as he tried to help Ron Hanks, a far-right lawmaker who didn’t spend nothing on TV advertising.
Mr Hanks’s worn-out campaign has raised just $ 124,000, precious amounts that in many places can barely pay for a competitive race for the country’s legislature. The Democrats could not help elevate Mr. Hanks to victory if he could not help himself.
Mr O’Dia now plans to give the Colorado Democrats what they fear: a race for the general election against Senator Michael Bennett, who has told people in private that his race will be difficult.
Colorado Republicans reject two election deniers.
Not after the Georgian election more than a month ago, Republican voters in the primary election rejected the list of election deniers in 2020 – but these contests were colored by the failed aspirations of former President Donald J. Trump for revenge against Gov. Brian Kemp and Secretary of State Brad Rafensperger.
In two statewide races in Colorado, Republicans had a choice between a candidate who accepted the result of the 2020 election and one or more whose campaigns were revived by the rejection of the legitimacy of Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s victory.
In both cases, voters chose the candidate who is committed to reality.
In the Senate race, Mr O’Dia accepted the election results, while Mr Hanks based his campaign on denying them. In a video announcing his campaign last year, Mr Hanks fired a pistol at what appeared to be a copier marked as a Dominion voting machine.
And in the Republican primary for Secretary of State, Tina Peters, a Mesa County official accused of a scheme to find evidence that the 2020 election was fraudulent, finished third in a contest in which she was the most famous candidate.
Ms. Peters and second-place finisher Mike O’Donnell, who also promoted the lies of 2020, came together to win a majority of the vote, but both were well behind Pam Anderson, a longtime local election official.
The Colorado races are hardly emblematic of Republican voters across the country. In Illinois, Mr. Bailey and Representative Mary Miller, who both refused to accept the results for 2020, walked to victory in their primary election. New York Republicans cast nearly two-thirds of their main vote for governor Lee Zeldin and Andrew Giuliani, who also questioned the results.
This is Darren Bailey’s party in Illinois.
Mr. Bailey, the newly cut Republican candidate for governor of Illinois, did not just fail the field of better-funded candidates (with much help from Mr. Pritzker). His queues stretched down the ballot to pick up a number of like-minded conservatives.
In Central and Southern Illinois, the signs read “Trump-Bailey-Miller,” highlighting the alliance between former President Mr. Bailey and Mrs. Miller. The congresswoman, who apologized last year after making a positive mention of Hitler, won her primary election against MP Rodney Davis after the two were drawn to the county together.
Down the ballot, Mr. Bailey’s personal attorney and campaign companion, Thomas DeVore, led the Republican primary for Attorney General over Steve Kim, a former Gov. Jim Edgar.
Several of Mr. Bailey’s election in the race for U.S. lawmakers defeated rivals backed by campaign money from Kenneth Griffin, the Chicago billionaire and chief benefactor of the Illinois Republican Party.
Find out the midterm elections in 2022
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Why are these intermediate races so important? This year’s race could shift the balance of power in Congress to Republicans, making it difficult for President Biden’s agenda for the second half of his term. They will also test the role of former President Donald J. Trump as King of the Republican Party. Here’s what you need to know:
What are the midterm elections? The by-elections are held two years after the presidential election, in the middle of the presidential term – hence the name. There are many seats to grab this year, including all 435 seats in the House of Representatives, 35 out of 100 seats in the Senate and 36 out of 50 governors.
What do the deadlines mean for Biden? With a small majority in Congress, Democrats are struggling to pass Mr. Biden’s agenda. Republican control of the House of Representatives or the Senate would make the president’s legislative goals almost impossible.
What competitions should you watch? Only a handful of seats will determine whether Democrats retain control of the House of Representatives over Republicans, and one state can transfer power to the Senate 50-50. Here are 10 viewing competitions in the House of Representatives and Senate, as well as several key governor competitions.
When are the key competitions held? The primary glove is already in motion. The closely watched races in Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Georgia took place in May, with more in the summer. The primary elections run until September before the November 8th general elections.
Go deeper. What is redirection and how does it affect the midterm elections? How does the survey work? How do you register to vote? Here are more answers to your pressing questions about the intermediate course.
One of Mr. Bailey’s nominees for the House of Illinois, Bill Hauter, a pediatric anesthesiologist at a Peoria hospital, is campaigning on a platform that opposes public health restrictions to stop the coronavirus pandemic.
Early Wednesday, Dr. Hauter rose to double-digit numbers in his primary election for Central Illinois County against a candidate funded in part by millions of dollars distributed by Mr. Griffin across the state to support moderate, community-friendly candidates in decline. . primary election of ballots.
“For a lot of money,” Dr. Hauter said in an interview at a Bailey campaign stop last week in Lincoln, Illinois. “But money is not the motivation. This is not a message, they are not supporters, they are not enthusiastic. You don’t need all these things. “
Special circumstances are still needed to remove a holder.
In New York, Governor Katie Hochul rejected two contenders. Her lieutenant governor, Antonio Delgado, was also on shore at the end of the game.
And in other states, several members of Congress who were thought to be at risk prevailed:
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Representative Michael Guest of Mississippi, a Republican who was prosecuted by his vote for a commission to investigate the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol;
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Utah’s Blake Moore, a Republican who allied himself with Sen. Mitt Romney, and Liz Cheney, who are now apostates to much of their party;
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Representative Danny K. Davis of Illinois, a Democrat who struggled to keep a lively campaign from a progressive candidate.
Republican senators in Oklahoma and Utah also had no problem winning re-nominations.
But there are limits that voters will not allow candidates to cross. Representative Stephen Palazzo, a Mississippi Republican, lost the runoff after the Congressional Ethics Office concluded he had misused campaign money, including directing $ 80,000 to a home on the coast he was trying to sell.
Mr. Palazzo fell for Mike Ezel, the sheriff.
In New York, Ms. Hochul was never thought to be in danger against her two contenders, one more liberal and one more conservative than she was.
But Mr Delgado’s victory was less certain. He faced a serious challenge from Anna Maria Archilla, a former immigrant rights activist who made her name against Senator Jeff Flake in a Senate elevator during the Supreme Court’s confirmation hearing for Judge Brett M. Cavanaugh.
Mr. Delgado, who joined Ms. Hochul’s administration in May after …
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