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The Federal Tap: Four states holding primaries in 32 congressional seats on Tuesday

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May 11, 2018Issue No. 112

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Week in review
On tap next week

THE WEEK IN REVIEW

Here's what happened in federal politics last week. To see what happened in state and local politics, click here.

Monday, May 7

Bipartisan veterans PAC opposing Jim Gray in KY-06 Democratic primary

  • Former Marine Corps Lt. Col. Amy McGrath is receiving backup from the With Honor Fund as she vies with Lexington Mayor Jim Gray for the Democratic nod in Kentucky’s 6th District. With Honor, which previously endorsed McGrath, disclosed $14,500 in satellite spending opposing Gray.
  • The winner of the McGrath and Gray contest will face incumbent Andy Barr (R), who won re-election in 2016 by 20 points. Both say they would work with President Donald Trump and might oppose Nancy Pelosi as the Democratic leader. State Sen. Reggie Thomas is also running. He supports a single-payer healthcare system and a federal buyback program for assault-style weapons.
  • With Honor has waded into both Democratic and Republican primaries in 2018, endorsing 10 Republicans and 12 Democrats. It recently disclosed over $400,000 in spending on former Navy SEAL Dan Crenshaw in the Republican primary runoff for Texas’ 2nd Congressional District. Its stated mission is to elect “principled next-generation veterans in order to solve our biggest problems and fix a Congress that is dysfunctional.”

Dan Crenshaw endorsed by Rick Perry in TX-02 GOP runoff

  • Former Navy SEAL Dan Crenshaw picked up an endorsement from U.S. Secretary of Energy and former Texas governor Rick Perry in the May 22 Republican runoff for Texas’ 2nd District. Perry and former Navy SEAL Marcus Luttrell, the subject of the film Lone Survivor, cut a radio ad where they express support for Crenshaw.
  • Crenshaw and state Rep. Kevin Roberts are competing to take over for retiring U.S. Rep. Ted Poe (R). They faced off with seven other candidates in the March 6 Republican primary and finished with the most votes. Crenshaw beat wealthy Republican activist Kathaleen Wall by 145 votes to make the runoff. She put $6 million of her own funds into the race; he raised about $80,000.
  • The runoff became contentious in early May when Roberts and the satellite group Conservative Results Matter began drawing attention to a December 2015 Facebook post by Crenshaw that was critical of Donald Trump and supportive of same-sex marriage. Crenshaw said he posted the remarks early in the 2016 presidential primary when candidates with Texas connections, including Jeb Bush and Ted Cruz, were still in the race.
  • The With Honor Fund, a bipartisan veterans PAC, has spent $420,000 supporting Crenshaw. Conservative Results Matter has spent $141,000 opposing him.
  • The race is one of five Texas Republican primary runoffs to replace retiring congressional Republicans. It is the only one where the Club for Growth has not endorsed a candidate. The other four are the 5th District (Jeb Hensarling’s seat), 6th District (Joe Barton’s seat), 21st District (Lamar Smith’s seat), and 27th District (Blake Farenthold’s former seat).

Tuesday, May 8

Trump announces U.S. will withdraw from Iran nuclear deal

  • President Donald Trump said that the U.S. will withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal. He said that he will not renew sanctions waivers that are part of the deal, effectively ending U.S. involvement in the accord. He also said that he would impose new sanctions on Iran.
  • Trump has asked Congress and the other nations in the deal to improve it by giving inspectors greater access to Iranian military sites, allowing inspectors access to Iran’s long-range missile program, eliminating some of the sunset provisions in the deal that would allow Iran to resume some of its nuclear-related activities, and addressing Iran’s support for terrorists. None of these concerns were addressed, so Trump decided to withdraw from the deal.
  • The United States and five world powers implemented an agreement with the Islamic Republic of Iran regarding the development of its nuclear program on January 16, 2016. The agreement, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), placed limits on Iran's nuclear program in exchange for billions in sanctions relief.
    • How have world leaders and members of Congress responded to the announcement? Find out here.
    • What sanctions will be re-imposed and when? Find out here.

Congress votes to repeal an agency guidance document for the first time

  • On May 8, 2018, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution to overturn an agency guidance document. The U.S. Senate had already approved the measure the previous month. The resolution addresses a guidance document issued in 2013 by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), a federal agency that regulates financial institutions. The document advised indirect auto lenders on how to comply with some of the laws and regulations administered by the CFPB.
  • If President Donald Trump (R) signs the resolution into law, the bulletin will become invalid, and the CFPB will not be able to issue similar requirements in the future. It would also be the first time that the CRA was used to overturn a guidance document rather than a rule issued through the rulemaking procedures of the Administrative Procedure Act. As of May 10, Trump had not taken action on the resolution. He is expected to sign it.
    • Learn more about this story and its possible future impact here.

Indiana primary review

  • Primaries in Indiana were held for federal, state, and local positions, and Ballotpedia covered a total of 172 seats on the ballot. These included the races for one U.S. Senate seat, nine U.S. House seats, three state executive seats, and 125 state legislative seats. Ballotpedia also covered local elections in Allen and Marion counties.
    • In the U.S. Senate primary, former state Rep. Mike Braun (R) defeated U.S. Reps. Luke Messer (R-Ind.) and Todd Rokita (R-Ind.) with 41 percent of the vote. Braun saturated the airwaves, spending more than $4 million to increase his name recognition and paint Messer and Rokita as interchangeable carbon copies. Braun presented himself as a businessman and outsider. He faces incumbent Sen. Joe Donnelly (D) in the general election in November.
    • In the U.S. House primary for Indiana’s 4th Congressional District, State Rep. Jim Baird (R) won the Republican nomination. He received 36 percent of the vote to former state Rep. Steve Braun’s 30 percent and former Mike Pence aide Diego Morales’ (R) 15 percent. Sitting Rep. Todd Rokita (R) did not pursue re-election in order to run in the U.S. Senate primary. The seat is rated “Safe Republican” by election forecasters.
    • In the U.S. House primary for Indiana’s 6th Congressional District, Greg Pence, the older brother of Vice President Mike Pence, won a five-way Republican primary to replace U.S. Rep. Luke Messer (R). He received nearly two-thirds of the vote and defeated the next best-performing candidate, businessman Jonathan Lamb, by over 40 percentage points. The district is rated “Safe Republican” by election forecasters.

North Carolina primary review

  • Primaries in North Carolina were held for federal, state, and local positions, and Ballotpedia covered a total of 265 seats on the ballot. These included the races for 13 U.S. House seats and 170 state legislative seats. Ballotpedia also covered local elections across five counties: Durham, Forsyth, Guilford, Mecklenburg, and Wake.
    • In the U.S. House primary for North Carolina’s 3rd Congressional District, U.S. Rep. Walter Jones (R) won the Republican primary. His victory all but guarantees him re-election in November since no Democrats filed for the seat. Jones faced two challengers who were critical of the incumbent’s deviation from President Trump’s agenda. He voted against the President's proposal to repeal and replace Obamacare in 2017. He was also one of 12 Republican House members to vote against the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act in 2017. The 3rd District voted for Trump by 20 points in 2016.
    • In the U.S. House primary for North Carolina’s 9th Congressional District, Rep. Robert Pittenger (R) became the first U.S. House incumbent in 2018 to lose in his party’s primary when he was defeated by challenger Mark Harris. According to unofficial results, Harris received 48.5 percent of the vote in the three-candidate field, with Pittenger getting just over 46 percent. This primary was a rematch of the 2016 Republican primary in this district, which Pittenger won then by just 134 votes. Harris will face Democratic nominee Dan McCready in the general election in a district which backed President Trump by just under 12 points in 2016.

Ohio primary review

  • Primaries in Ohio were held for federal, state, and local positions, and Ballotpedia covered a total of 220 seats on the ballot. These included the races for one U.S. Senate seat, 16 U.S. House seats, one special election for a U.S. House seat, six state executive seats, 116 state legislative seats, and Ohio state courts. Ballotpedia also covered judicial and municipal elections across five counties: Cuyahoga, Fairfield, Franklin, Hamilton, and Lucas.
    • The U.S. Senate seat currently held by Sen. Sherrod Brown is up for election this year. Brown was unopposed in the Democratic primary. He will face Jim Renacci in the general election after Renacci received 47.39 percent of the vote in the Republican primary against four other Republican candidates. This seat is rated as Lean Democratic by ratings outlets. CNN listed this seat among 10 U.S. Senate seats it considered most likely to flip in 2018.
    • All 16 U.S. House seats were on the ballot. As of May 2018, the Republican Party holds a 12-4 majority in the U.S. House. Of the 14 incumbents running for re-election, eight faced challengers in the primary. All incumbents advanced to the general election where they will each face competition to retain their seats.
    • Ohio’s 12th Congressional District held a primary for both its regular and special election. The special election will hold its general election on August 7, 2018. Danny O’Connor won the two Democratic primaries and Troy Balderson won both Republican primaries. Preliminary reports show the special Democratic primary had 43,945 votes cast while the regular Democratic primary had 43,910. The Republican special primary had 67,847 votes cast while the regular Republican primary had 67,120.
    • Anthony Gonzalez defeated Christina Hagan in Ohio’s 16th Congressional District Republican primary. He was endorsed by House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), while she was backed by the House Freedom Caucus.

West Virginia primary review

  • Primary elections in West Virginia were held for federal and state legislative positions, and Ballotpedia covered a total of 121 seats on the ballot. These included the races for one U.S. Senate seat, three U.S. House seats, 17 state senate seats, and 100 state house seats.

Wednesday, May 9

North Korea releases three U.S. prisoners

  • President Donald Trump announced that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo secured the release of three Americans held as prisoners in North Korea. Trump wrote on Twitter, "I am pleased to inform you that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is in the air and on his way back from North Korea with the 3 wonderful gentlemen that everyone is looking so forward to meeting. They seem to be in good health. Also, good meeting with Kim Jong Un. Date & Place set. Secretary Pompeo and his 'guests' will be landing at Andrews Air Force Base at 2:00 A.M. in the morning. I will be there to greet them. Very exciting!" The three men released were Kim Dong-chul, Tony Kim, and Kim Hak-song. They were imprisoned on charges of espionage or other anti-state activities against North Korea. Pompeo was on his second visit to North Korea to prepare for the meeting between Trump and Kim Jong Un.

Trump’s pick for CIA director appears before Senate Intel Committee

  • Gina Haspel, President Donald Trump’s nominee for Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), appeared before the Senate Intelligence Committee for her confirmation hearing. During the hearing, she discussed the CIA’s detention and interrogation program after the September 11, 2001, terror attacks, among other things. In her opening statement, Haspel said that she would not restart the detention and interrogation program. When asked by Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) if she would disregard an order by the president to reimplement the detention and interrogation program, Haspel said, “No. I believe that CIA must undertake activities that are consistent with American values.” She also said, “My moral compass is strong. I would not allow CIA to undertake activity that I thought was immoral, even it was technically legal. I would absolutely not permit it.”
  • The Senate Intel Committee is expected to vote on her nomination next week. Her nomination will then head to the full Senate for a vote where she will need a simple majority to be confirmed. Republicans currently hold a 51-49 majority in the Senate. Most Republicans are expected to vote for Haspel, while most Democrats are expected to vote against her nomination. Two Republicans oppose her nomination, and one Democrat supports her nomination. Republican Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said he will vote against Haspel’s nomination. Republican Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), who also opposes her nomination, is not expected to vote because he is undergoing treatment for brain cancer. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) is the only Democratic senator who has publicly said that he will vote for Haspel. If confirmed by the Senate, Haspel would be the first woman to lead the CIA.

Thursday, May 10

Trump to meet Kim on June 12 in Singapore

  • President Donald Trump announced that he will meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on June 12, 2018, in Singapore. He wrote on Twitter, "The highly anticipated meeting between Kim Jong Un and myself will take place in Singapore on June 12th. We will both try to make it a very special moment for World Peace!" Singapore was chosen because it maintains diplomatic relations with both the U.S. and North Korea. When Trump and Kim meet, it will be the first time a sitting U.S. president meets with the leader of North Korea.

Friday, May 11

Connecticut Republicans head to state convention

  • The Connecticut Republican Party began its state convention, which will continue through May 12. At the convention, delegates are voting to endorse candidates in the August 14 primary for governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, treasurer, secretary of state, comptroller, and the state’s five congressional seats. In order to be officially endorsed, candidates must receive votes of support from over 50 percent of the delegates. If no candidates make that threshold, no one will be listed as the party’s nominee on the primary ballot. Candidates who receive votes of support from at least 15 percent of the delegates will be automatically added to the primary ballot.
    • The Connecticut Democratic Party will hold its state convention from May 18 to May 19.

Congress is in session

The Senate will be in session Monday through Friday. The House will be in session Tuesday through Friday.

SCOTUS is in session

The Supreme Court has finished its argument scheduled for the term. To learn more about this term, read our review.

WHAT'S ON TAP NEXT WEEK

Here's what is happening in federal politics this week. To see what happened in state and local politics, click here.

Saturday, May 12

Rep. Charlie Dent (R-Pa.) retires

  • Rep. Charlie Dent (R-Pa.) retires from office today. On September 7, 2017, Dent announced that he would not seek re-election in 2018. Dent was first elected to Pennsylvania's 15th Congressional District seat in 2004. Fifty-three representatives are not seeking re-election to their U.S. House districts.

Tuesday, May 15

Idaho primary review

  • Ballotpedia will cover a total of 133 federal and state seats up for primary election in Idaho. These include U.S. Congress, governor and other state executives, Idaho State Legislature, and Idaho state courts. Ballotpedia will also cover judicial and municipal elections in Ada County.
    • Idaho’s 1st Congressional District is holding a Republican primary to replace Raul Labrador (R). Top contenders include former state Sen. Russ Fulcher, former Lieutenant Gov. David Leroy, and state Rep. Luke Malek. Fulcher is backed by the Club for Growth and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, Leroy was endorsed by the American Conservative Union, and Malek is supported by the Republican Main Street Partnership.

Nebraska primary preview

  • Ballotpedia will cover a total of 44 federal and state seats up for primary election in Nebraska. These include one seat in the U.S. Senate, three seats in the U.S. House, nine state executive offices including governor, and 24 seats in the state senate. Ballotpedia will also cover local primaries in Douglas and Lancaster counties. These races include county commissioner, assessor, attorney, sheriffic, treasurer, and more.
    • In the U.S. House primary for Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District, moderates and progressives will clash in the Democratic race between the district’s former congressman, Brad Ashford, and nonprofit executive and Metropolitan Community College board member Kara Eastman. Ashford, who held the seat for a single term before losing his re-election bid to current incumbent Rep. Don Bacon (R), has the backing of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC). The DCCC added him to its “Red to Blue” list, meaning it will likely provide Ashford with both financial and organizational support if he wins the primary. The Progressive Change Campaign Committee is backing Eastman. She also has the support of local unions and state figures such as state Sens. Tony Vargas and Justin Wayne. Eastman is running on a platform that includes tuition-free college and universal healthcare.

Oregon primary preview

  • Ballotpedia will cover a total of 116 federal and state seats up for primary election in Oregon. These include U.S. Congress, governor, labor commissioner, Oregon State Legislature, and Oregon state courts. Ballotpedia will also cover judicial and municipal elections in Portland and Multnomah County. Also up for a vote in Portland, Oregon, and Multnomah County will be Measure 26-197 and Measure 34-284. Measure 26-197 would renew a property tax for five years to fund children programs, while Measure 34-284 would renew a property tax for five years to fund teacher positions in the Beaverton School District.

Pennsylvania primary preview

  • Ballotpedia will cover a total of 249 federal and state seats up for primary election in Pennsylvania. These include U.S. Congress, governor and lieutenant governor, and Pennsylvania General Assembly. Special elections are also being held for District 48, District 68, and District 178 of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
    • In the Republican primary for governor, state Sen. Scott Wagner (R), businessman Paul Mango (R), and attorney Laura Ellsworth (R) are facing off for the nomination to challenge incumbent Gov. Tom Wolf (D), who is unopposed in the Democratic primary. Wagner and Mango have each emphasized their backgrounds and experience and challenged decisions made by Gov. Wolf during his first term. Ellsworth has emphasized her status as a political outsider and promised to bring a different tone to the state’s politics.
    • Pennsylvania’s new 5th Congressional District will hold Democratic and Republican primaries. on May 15. A February Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling creating new boundaries for the state’s congressional districts saw the new 5th District cobbled together from pieces of the old 1st, 2nd, and 7th Districts. Hillary Clinton won the newly-drawn District 5 by 28 percentage points in 2016. She won the old district by two points. Truthout said this was "the most dramatic shift of all 18 congressional districts caused by Pennsylvania's redistricting." Ten candidates are running in the election. Ballotpedia identified Richard Lazer, Ashley Lunkenheimer, and Mary Gay Scanlon as top contenders.
    • Pennsylvania’s new 7th Congressional District will hold Democratic and Republican primaries. The Democratic primary features a three-way Democratic battle between candidates who represent different wings of the party. The Republican primary is a contest between two candidates who express support for President Trump. The new 7th District most closely resembles the old 15th District represented by Charlie Dent (R), who is resigning Saturday. After the redrawing, the seat went from leaning slightly Republican to slightly Democratic, based on 2016 presidential election returns.
    • Eight Republicans are competing for their party’s nomination in the state’s newly-drawn 13th Congressional District, which supported President Trump by a more than 40 percent margin in 2016. There is no incumbent in this race, as Rep. Bill Shuster (R), whose old 9th District comprises a majority of this new district, announced he would not run for re-election in January 2018. The field of candidates running for this seat includes the father of Shuster’s former campaign manager, two of Shuster’s former primary opponents, and two state legislators. Shuster has neither endorsed, nor donated campaign funds to, any of the eight candidates in the field.

Friday, May 18

Washington state filing deadline

Where was the president last week?

  • On Tuesday, President Donald Trump spoke with Chinese President Xi Jinping. He then met with Republican senators at the White House. He had lunch with Vice President Mike Pence and Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen. In the afternoon, he announced his decision to withdraw from the nuclear deal with Iran. In the evening, he spoke at a Federal Judges Association reception.
  • On Wednesday, Trump held a Cabinet meeting. In the afternoon he participated in a "Celebration of Military Mothers and Spouses" event at the White House. In the evening, he had dinner with members of Congress.
  • On Thursday, Trump welcomed three Americans who had been detained in North Korea back to the U.S. In this evening, Trump hosted a rally in Elkhart, Indiana.
  • On Friday, Trump spoke about his plan to curb drug prices in a speech in the Rose Garden.

Federal Judiciary

  • 148 federal judicial vacancies
  • 81 pending nominations
  • 34 future federal judicial vacancies


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The Tap covered election news, public policy, and other noteworthy events from February 2016 to February 2022.

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