If you were focused on the Democratic National Convention last night, you may have missed some major primary results from Tuesday. We’ve got you covered with our top takeaways:
Gaetz easily survives primary challenge fueled by McCarthy allies.
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), the controversial hard-right House Republican who engineered the ouster of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, is all but certain to return to Congress. Gaetz easily won his 1st District primary against Navy veteran Aaron Dimmock. Gaetz’s triumph came amid millions of dollars of anti-Gaetz attack ads that aired in the district. The effort was backed by close allies of McCarthy.
In the end, the race wasn’t even close. With 94% of the vote in, Gaetz was leading by more than 40 points.
It’s Scott versus Mucarsel-Powell in Florida Senate race.
If Democrats want to have any hope of accomplishing the ambitious goal set by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of gaining seats, they need to win Florida. Their candidate in the Sunshine State will be former Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell (D-Fla.), who coasted to victory in the Democratic primary.
Mucarsel-Powell beat her closest challenger, businessman Stanley Campbell, by nearly 50 points and won in all but two counties in the state. Mucarsel-Powell has outraised Scott and has polled close to the incumbent in some eye-catching surveys. But the massive GOP voter registration edge in Florida and the state’s rightward lean will make a Democratic victory an uphill climb.
Haridopolos wins GOP primary to replace Posey.
Rep. Bill Posey’s (R-Fla.) successor is likely to be former state legislator Mike Haridopolos after a dominant primary win. Haridopolos beat his nearest competitor by more than 50 points.
Peltola above 50% in Alaska primary.
Democratic Rep. Mary Peltola advanced to the November general election in Alaska’s ranked-choice voting system, as did Republicans Nick Begich and Nancy Dahlstrom. Who the fourth candidate will be isn’t clear yet.
Peltola — one of the most vulnerable Democratic incumbents this fall — was leading with 50.1% of the vote, far ahead of the two Republicans.
In other campaign news: EMILYs List is endorsing Democrat Rebecca Cooke, who’s running against Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Wis.) in Wisconsin’s 3rd District. Cooke just emerged from a competitive primary versus Katrina Shankland.
— Max Cohen
