Former President Donald Trump’s high-profile endorsements had mixed results on Tuesday night, in the broadest test of his appeal, and progressives appear to have had a strong showing, though some races had yet to be called early Wednesday morning.
Five states had primary contests Tuesday. One of the most closely watched races, the GOP primary for a Senate seat in Pennsylvania is still too close to call, with Trump-endorsed Mehmet Oz holding a slight edge over David McCormick. Democrats chose progressive John Fetterman over moderate Conor Lamb to take on the GOP nominee in November.
In the state’s gubernatorial race, CBS News projects far-right Doug Mastriano will win. Democrats have united behind Attorney General Josh Shapiro, who did not face a primary challenger.
In one of the biggest upsets of the night, CBS News projects Chuck Edwards will win the primary for the 11th Congressional District, defeating incumbent Rep. Madison Cawthorn.
Here are the major primary results by state:
Pennsylvania
Polls closed at 8 p.m. ET in closely-watched Pennsylvania, the fifth-largest state by population and a perennial swing state. Republican Sen. Pat Toomey is retiring, leaving his seat open. As of early Wednesday, Republicans Dr. Mehmet Oz, who was backed by President Trump, and David McCormick were locked in a tight battle for the nomination. Kathy Barnette, a conservative who Steve Bannon once referred to as “ultra MAGA,” said Tuesday night that she was not conceding yet.
Keith Srakocic / AP
Oz said late Tuesday, “When it’s this close, what do you expect? Everything about this campaign has been tight.”
If the statewide race ends with less than a 0.5% margin of victory, there will be an automatic recount.
On the Democratic side, CBS News projects Lt. Gov. John Fetterman will win the nomination. Fetterman bested U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb and state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta. Fetterman, who backed Sen. Bernie Sanders in 2016, on Friday suffered a stroke caused by a clot, and his campaign issued a statement on Tuesday saying he would be receiving a pacemaker with a defibrillator. Fetterman tweeted a photo of himself on Tuesday voting from the hospital with an emergency absentee ballot.
Fetterman’s wife, Gisele Barreto Fetterman, gave his victory speech Tuesday, since Fetterman is still hospitalized. The campaign also played a video of Fetterman thanking supporters.
“This race we’re running is a race for the future,” said Gisele Barreto Fetterman. “It’s a race for every job that has been lost, every factory that has been closed, every cost that has been rising, every worker that can’t keep up. It’s a race for a better Pennsylvania.”
President Biden also sent out a message congratulating Fetterman, saying, “Democrats are united around John, who is a strong nominee, will run a tough race, and can win in November.”
In the governor’s race, Democratic Gov. Tom Wolfe is term-limited, and Democrats have united behind state Attorney General Josh Shapiro, who ran uncontested on their primary ballot.
On the Republican side, CBS News projects Doug Mastriano will win. Establishment Republicans had worried the far-right, Trump-backed state senator couldn’t win a general election. He defeated several challengers, including former Representative Lou Barletta, former U.S. Attorney Bill McSwain and businessman Dave White.
“Failed politicians and politics have stirred so many of us who wanted nothing to do with politics,” Mastriano said in his victory speech. “There’s this movement here that’s going to shock the state here on November 8.”
In Democrat Lamb’s seat, the swing 17th District in the Pittsburgh area, CBS News projects Chris Deluzio will win. He defeated Democratic National Committee member Sean Meloy.
In Pennsylvania’s 12th District, progressive and Sanders-backed state Rep. Summer Lee is locked in a tight race against Steve Irwin, who is backed by retiring Democratic Rep. Matt Doyle.
Kentucky
In the Kentucky Senate primaries, CBS News projects Sen. Rand Paul will win the Republican nomination and CBS News projects Charles Booker, a progressive candidate who ran for the Democratic nomination to challenge Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell in 2020, will win the Democratic nomination.
North Carolina
CBS News projects Rep. Ted Budd, backed by former President Trump, will win the Republican nomination for Senate in North Carolina. CBS News projects Cheri Beasley will win the Democratic nomination for Senate in that state. The seat is open, with Republican Sen. Richard Burr retiring.
In North Carolina’s 11th district, CBS News projects Chuck Edwards will win, defeating incumbent freshman Rep. Madison Cawthorn. The Edwards campaign said Cawthorn had conceded.
Republican Sen. Thom Tillis, who has been vocal in his disapproval of Cawthorn, backed Edwards, a state senator, in the primary, saying “unfortunately, Madison Cawthorn has fallen well short of the most basic standards Western North Carolina expects from their representatives, and voters now have several well-qualified candidates to choose from who would be a significant improvement.”
Cawthorn has been facing a number of scandals, from calling Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy a “thug,” to getting caught driving with a revoked license, to bringing a loaded gun into a Charlotte airport to ethics complaints of alleged misconduct toward his staff.
In North Carolina’s 4th District, CBS projects state Sen. Valerie Foushee will win. She defeated Sen. Elizabeth Warren-backed Durham County Commissioner Nida Allam, who would have become the first Muslim woman to serve in public office in North Carolina, and “American Idol” contestant Clay Aiken. The current member of Congress, Democrat David Price, is retiring.
In North Carolina’s 13th District, outside of Raleigh, CBS News projects Bo Hines will win. Trump backed Hines, a 26-year-old and former college football recruit.
Idaho
Polls closed statewide at 11 p.m. ET in Idaho. Polls closed statewide at 11 p.m. ET in Idaho. CBS News projected Brad Little will win the Republican primary, fending off a a primary challenge from Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin.
McGeachin had run to the right of Little, and she had falsely claimed that the 2020 election was stolen.
She’s not the only one running statewide in Idaho to make those claims. Two of the three Republican candidates running to be Idaho’s chief elections officer have falsely claimed that President Biden didn’t fairly win the 2020 election. State Representative Dorothy Moon signed on to a letter from an Arizona lawmaker calling for a “50-state audit” of the 2020 election.
Oregon
Oregon, which has mail elections, had an 11 p.m. ET deadline for all ballots to be returned or postmarked.
Oregon’s 5th District member of Congress, Democrat Kurt Schrader, has the backing of Mr. Biden, but is facing a primary challenge from progressive Jamie McLeod Skinner.
In Oregon’s 6th District, state Rep. Andrea Salinas and tech researcher Carrick Flynn are locked in one of the most expensive and contentious Democratic primaries in the country. Salinas has the backing of BOLD PAC, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus’ campaign arm, while Flynn is endorsed by the House Majority PAC, a group aligned with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California.
Sen. Jeff Merkley, a Democrat that has not endorsed in the primary, called the House Majority PAC’s involvement “flat-out wrong.”
