Heart of the Primaries, Republicans-Special Edition 4 (May 16, 2018)
In this special post-primary edition: Pennsylvania's 7th primary too close to call, Little defeats Labrador for gubernatorial nomination, and six Idaho state legislators fall in their primaries.
Here are the results of the May 15 primaries so far…
Nothstein narrowly leads Browning for PA-07 Republican nomination
In a race that is still too close to call, Olympic cyclist Marty Nothstein leads businessman Dean Browning by about 1 percentage point in Pennsylvania’s 7th District Republican primary.
Both candidates touted their support for President Trump and his agenda. But Browning was associated with Tea Party groups and criticized Nothstein for taking donations from anti-Trump Republicans.
Trump won the Allentown-based seat in 2016. But court-ordered redistricting made it a slight Clinton seat. If Nothstein’s lead holds, he will face former Allentown Solicitor Susan Wild (D) in November.
Wagner wins Republican Pennsylvania GOP gubernatorial nomination
State Sen. Scott Wagner (R) defeated businessman Paul Mango (R) and attorney Laura Ellsworth (R) in the Republican gubernatorial primary, continuing a 40-year streak of Republican Party-endorsed candidates winning the gubernatorial nomination.
With 98 percent of precincts reporting, Wagner leads with 44.3 percent, Mango has 36.9 percent, and Ellsworth has 18.8 percent.
Wagner emphasized his experience running a waste disposal business and argued that he was the most electable of the three candidates. Wagner’s ads targeted incumbent Gov. Tom Wolf (D).
Mango emphasized his experience in the public sector and presented himself as a counterweight to a corrupt and detached Harrisburg. Mango and Wagner clashed throughout the primary over who was better-suited to carry the conservative banner.
Ellsworth emphasized her lack of political expertise and ran ads that were critical of the tone of her opponents’ campaigns.
Wagner and his running mate Jeff Bartos (R), who defeated three opponents in the lieutenant governor primary, will face the ticket of incumbent Gov. Tom Wolf (D) and Braddock Mayor John Fetterman (D) in the general election.
Joyce overcomes Club for Growth opposition, wins PA-13 primary
Dermatologist John Joyce defeated seven other candidates to win the Republican nomination in Pennsylvania’s newly-drawn 13th Congressional District.
Joyce finished about 1,500 votes ahead of state Sen. John Eichelberger. State Rep. Stephen Bloom finished third.
The Club for Growth opposed Joyce, airing television ads attacking him in the campaign's final weeks. The Republican Main Street Partnership endorsed Joyce and also funded mailers attacking Eichelberger and 2016 candidate Art Halvorson, who finished fifth..
Rep. Bill Shuster (R), whose old 9th District comprises a majority of this new district, announced he would not run for re-election. Shuster neither endorsed nor donated to any of the eight candidates in the field. Due to the partisan makeup of the district, the winner of this primary will be heavily favored in November.
Reschenthaler defeats Saccone in PA-14
Two months after losing the PA-18 special election to Conor Lamb (D), Rick Saccone sought the GOP nomination in the new 14th District. His comeback fell short, as Guy Reschenthaler defeated Saccone Republican primary. The new 14th District resembles the old 18th District where Saccone lost a special election to Lamb. But the 14th is more Republican-leaning, having voted for Donald Trump by 29 percentage points in 2016, as opposed to Trump’s 20 percentage point margin in the 18th. According to The Hill, Reschenthaler cast Saccone as a weak candidate and suggested he would have won the PA-18 special election if he had been nominated.
Little defeats Labrador in Idaho gubernatorial primary
With 99 percent of precincts reporting, Idaho Lt. Gov. Brad Little (R) won the GOP gubernatorial nomination with 37.3 percent of the vote.
Rep. Raul Labrador (R) finished second at 32.6 percent and businessman Tommy Ahlquist finished third with (R) 26.3 percent. No other candidate received more than 2 percent of the vote.
Little emphasized his experience in state government and had the backing of Gov. Butch Otter (R) and Sen. Jim Risch (R).
Labrador has represented Idaho’s 1st Congressional District since 2010 and is a founding member of the House Freedom Caucus. He has cast himself as the most conservative candidate in the race, and had endorsements from the Family Policy Alliance of Idaho and former Donald Trump deputy campaign manager David Bossie.
Ahlquist, a real estate mogul and one-time ER doctor who emphasized his business experience and outsider status had endorsements from former GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney (R-MA) and conservative commentator Candace Owens.
Little faces former state Rep. Paulette Jordan (D) in the general election, which is rated “Solid Republican” by two outlets and “Safe Republican” by a third.
Fulcher wins ID-01 GOP primary
Former state Sen. Russ Fulcher won the Republican primary in Idaho’s 1st Congressional District by over 20 percentage points. He will likely replace Raul Labrador (R) in what’s rated as a safe Republican seat.
Fulcher has Labrador’s backing for the nomination, as well as support from the Club for Growth and leaders of the House Freedom Caucus. His major opponents were David Leroy, a former Idaho attorney general and lieutenant governor, and the Republican Main Street Partnership-endorsed state Rep. Luke Malek.
Idaho Freedom Caucus members lose primary challenges
Six Idaho Republican state legislators lost to primary challengers Tuesday.
At least three of them—state Reps. Ron Nate and Jeff Thompson and state Sen. Tony Potts—were members of the Idaho Freedom Caucus, a conservative faction of state legislators similar to the Freedom Caucus in the U.S. House.
The incumbents who lost were state Reps. Julie VanOrden, Tom Loertscher, and Karey Hanks.
Up next: a May 19 nominating convention in Virginia's 6th, May 22 statewide primaries in Arkansas, Georgia, and Kentucky, plus primary runoffs in Texas. Stories to watch include...
- Texas Congressional runoff elections will decide nominees for five departing GOP incumbents from safe Republican seats. A sixth race will pick the GOP nominee for the TX-29 seat.
- There’s a crowded field in the Georgia gubernatorial primary, where a winner must receive more than 50 percent of the vote to avoid a runoff.
