Mamdani is a ‘kingmaker,’ and other takeaways from Tuesday’s primaries
The biggest winner of the night in New York was arguably New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, less than six months into his term, says The Washington Post.
He showed the strength of his progressive coalition in the state, using his political muscle to elevate three like-minded candidates to victories in Democratic House primary races — including two that ousted incumbents, says The New York Times.
Brad Lander, the former city comptroller, ousted Rep. Dan Goldman. Democratic Socialist Darializa Avila Chevalier beat Adriano Espaillat, a powerful incumbent, “in a stunning upset,” says the Times. And another Democratic Socialist, Claire Valdez, is poised to succeed Rep. Nydia Velázquez, who’s retiring.
In a race in which Mamdani didn’t make an endorsement, Micah Lasher, a state assemblyman, emerged from a field including Jack Schlossberg, the grandson of John F. Kennedy, and is expected to succeed retiring Rep. Jerrold Nadler in the safely Democratic district.
Elsewhere in the state, Anthony Constantino, the sticker magnate who erected a 12-foot “Vote for Trump” sign atop his company’s headquarters, won the Republican nomination to replace Rep. Elise Stefanik. New York Democrats nominated their state comptroller of two decades, Thomas DiNapoli.
In Maryland, state Del. Adrian Boafo won the Democratic primary to replace retiring Rep. Steny Hoyer in the 5th District, aided by $11 million from pro-crypto and pro-Israel groups. Boafo was Hoyer’s former campaign manager and his preferred successor. “The primary was marked by intraparty divisions over heavy outside spending and what may be the last intraparty fight between Hoyer and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who endorsed a rival in the race,” says Politico.
Rep. April McClain Delaney won her “bitter and expensive” Democratic primary for Maryland’s 6th District, denying her predecessor, former Rep. David Trone, from making a comeback, a separate Politico article says. McClain Delaney, who’s serving her first term in Congress, had the backing of the rest of the state’s Democratic congressional delegation, along with Gov. Wes Moore.
In South Carolina’s runoffs, Democrat Nancy Lacore, a vice admiral and chief of the Navy Reserve who was fired by Pete Hegseth, and Republican Jenny Costa Honeycutt, a Charleston County councilwoman, won their races and will face off for the 1st District in November, reports the South Carolina Daily Gazette. The primary election two weeks ago narrowed a field of 10 Republicans and seven Democrats vying to replace Rep. Nancy Mace, who unsuccessfully ran for governor.
Alan Wilson, South Carolina’s longtime attorney general, won his runoff in the Republican primary for governor, defeating Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette. President Trump had endorsed both candidates. Wilson will face State Rep. Jermaine Johnson in November. South Carolina hasn’t elected a Democratic governor since 1998, says the Times.
In Utah, court-ordered redistricting led to the creation of a blue congressional district in Salt Lake City, meaning the state is likely to elect a Democrat to Congress this fall for the first time since 2018, says the Times. Ben McAdams, a moderate former congressman who won that 2018 race, won the Democratic primary on Tuesday, defeating three progressive challengers, including Nate Blouin, a state senator backed by Sen. Bernie Sanders, D-Vt.
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