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Missouri, Michigan, Washington and Kansas primaries 2024: Cori Bush loses
By 538 Staff,
2024-08-06
Three months out from the big November election, around a third of all states had yet to hold (non-presidential) primaries. On Tuesday, Democrats and Republicans in Missouri, Michigan, Washington and Kansas went to the polls to pick which candidates will appear on their ballots in the fall.
The electoral fate of a couple endangered House incumbents hung in the balance on this packed primary day. In Missouri, a progressive "Squad" member was defeated by centrist forces, and in Washington, one of only two remaining House Republicans who voted to impeach President Donald Trump was challenged by not one but two Trump-endorsed opponents from his right.
Meanwhile, both parties locked in their nominees for Michigan’s critical Senate race, and the outcomes of Republican primary contests are likely to determine Missouri’s next governor and attorney general. In battleground House districts, the fields were set for competitive fall contests, while in safe red and blue districts, ideological lines were drawn as candidates duke it out in primaries tantamount to election.
As usual, 538 reporters and contributors broke down the election results as they came in with live updates, analysis and commentary. Check out our full live blog below!
Latest Developments
Aug 7, 1:01 AM That’s a wrap! Election day Tuesday has turned into election hangover Wednesday, so we're calling it a night on our Aug. 6 live blog. Here's a recap of all the races that have been projected so far:
- In the night's marquee race, the Democratic primary for Missouri's 1st District , progressive Rep. Cori Bush became the second "Squad" member this cycle to lose renomination. Backed by millions of dollars from AIPAC, St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell won the Democratic nomination and will almost certainly be the district's next congressman.
- In Michigan's Senate race, Democratic Rep. Elissa Slotkin won her party's nomination and former Rep. Mike Rogers won the GOP primary. The Slotkin-Rogers matchup will represent one of the key contests on the 2024 Senate map in November. - Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe prevailed in the Republican primary for Missouri governor . He was the most moderate candidate in the field, which also included Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, who surprisingly finished in last place despite leading in most polls. - In the solid-red Missouri 3rd District , state Sen. Bob Onder, who was backed by Trump, prevailed in his race for the Republican nomination and is likely to go on to win the general election in November. - In Kansas's 2nd District , former state Attorney General Derek Schmidt secured his spot on the ballot this fall — and most likely a seat in Congress in this safe red district. He defeated Shawn Tiffany, a rancher and feedlot owner, and Jeff Kahrs, who's held various positions in both state and federal government. - In Kansas's 3rd District, oncologist and veteran Prasanth Reddy won the GOP primary but by a narrow margin over Karen Crnkovich. Reddy was endorsed by House Speaker Mike Johnson and outspent Crnkovich 6-to-1. He'll face an uphill battle in the fall against Democratic Rep. Sharice Davids. - In Michigan's 3rd District , attorney Paul Hudson looks to have defeated financial adviser Michael Markey in the GOP primary. This sets up Hudson to face Democratic Rep. Hillary Scholten in what could be a competitive tilt, although Scholten will start as a favorite. - In Michigan's 8th District, state Sen. Kristen McDonald Rivet won the Democratic nomination over Army Ranger Matt Collier and State Board of Education President Pamela Pugh, while 2022 nominee Paul Junge easily won the GOP primary over former Dow Chemical executive Mary Draves. Junge is hoping that third time's the charm after consecutive losses to Elissa Slotkin in the 7th District and Dan Kildee in the 8th District in 2020 and 2022. - In Michigan's 10th District , 2022 nominee Carl Marlinga won the Democratic primary, setting up a rematch with Republican Rep. John James in this light-red seat. - In the Republican primary for Missouri attorney general , incumbent Andrew Bailey prevailed over one of Trump's personal attorneys, Will Scharf. - The AP has projected that the Washington governor 's race will be between Democratic Attorney General Bob Ferguson and Republican former Rep. Dave Reichert. - In Washington's 3rd District , the AP projected Republican Joe Kent and incumbent Democrat Marie Gluesenkamp Perez to be the top two finishers, which means a rematch of 2022, when Gluesenkamp Perez eked out a win.
There are also a handful of races that didn't have projected winners when we put the live blog to bed.
- A slow count in Wayne County, Michigan, home to Detroit, has left us unclear as to who might win the Democratic primary in Michigan's 13th District . Based on the AP's results, Rep. Shri Thanedar leads 52 percent to 34 percent with only 9 percent of the expected vote reporting. But the city of Detroit's unofficial tally has reported a larger number of votes and has the two candidates running almost even. Either way, we're still in the dark.
- In Washington's 4th District , former NASCAR driver Jerrold Sessler leads in the top-two primary with 30 percent, ahead of Republican Rep. Dan Newhouse's 25 percent, with 55 percent of the expected vote reporting. Veterans advocate Tiffany Smiley is in third with about 20 percent. Trump endorsed both Sessler and Smiley here. In Washington's 6th District , Democratic state Sen. Emily Randall leads the top-two primary with 33 percent with 62 percent of the expected vote reporting. That puts her just ahead of Republican state Sen. Drew MacEwen, who has 31 percent, and Democratic Public Lands Commissioner Hilary Franz, who has 25 percent. - In Washington's 5th District, the AP projected Republican Michael Baumgartner will advance to the general election, but we are still waiting to see who will finish second. With 57 percent of the expected vote reporting, Democrat Carmela Conroy has 20 percent, while Republican Jaquelin Maycumber has 12 percent.
—Monica Potts, Nathaniel Rakich, Geoffrey Skelley and Tia Yang, 538; Meredith Conroy, 538 contributor; and Jacob Rubashkin, Inside Elections
Aug 7, 12:53 AM McDonald Rivet projected winner in Michigan's 8th District Democratic primary
The AP has projected state Sen. Kristen McDonald Rivet, who was the favorite in this race, will defeat former Army Ranger Matt Collier and state Board of Education President Pamela Pugh.
—Meredith Conroy, 538 contributor Aug 7, 12:50 AM Final thought: Republican women in open primaries had a bad night
In a few notable races tonight, GOP women's groups put their support behind qualified women in open primaries, but their candidates failed to advance. Leslie Lewallen, a former King County prosecutor, in Washington's 3rd, Mary Draves, a former executive at Dow Chemical, in Michigan's 8th, and Karen Crnkovich, a small business owner, in Kansas's 3rd, were all defeated by men with backing from either Trump or the NRCC. Without more coordination, gender representation of the GOP will continue to skew heavily male, unlike Democrats, who have been adding women to their caucus steadily since 2018.
—Meredith Conroy, 538 contributor Aug 7, 12:43 AM Final thought: It's a different campaign now
My final thoughts for the night are about something we haven't been covering in today's blog: Harris's selection of Minnesota Gov. Walz for her vice-presidential candidate, whom she introduced today at an energetic and crowded rally in Philadelphia. I bring it up because we've been covering a lot of primary nights this year, but as we're heading into the last few months of the campaign, it's a totally different race than what we expected it would be at the top of the ticket.
I have no idea how that's going to affect some of these downballot races, but the general election will provide a different context for every candidate than the one they expected earlier in the year. That's something I'm thinking about that as we go forward and shift toward the general election. —Monica Potts, 538 Aug 7, 12:42 AM Final thought: Trump mostly gets the GOP winners he wanted
Trump endorsed 25 Republican candidates in 22 races today, and as things stand, the only contenders who lost or look to be in trouble are in the two races where he endorsed more than one candidate: Missouri's gubernatorial primary and the top-two race in Washington's 4th District.
In Missouri, Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe won the Republican primary for governor with close to 40 percent of the vote, according to the AP, defeating two other candidates who also received Trump's blessing. In Washington, we don't have a projection in the 4th District yet, but former NASCAR driver Jerrold Sessler leads with 30 percent over the 25 percent of Republican Rep. Dan Newhouse, who voted to impeach Trump in 2021 and is persona non grata to the former president. Veterans advocate Tiffany Smiley, whom Trump also endorsed, is in third with about 20 percent. While the presidential race looks to be on a knife's edge, the Republican Party continues to become more Trump's party every day.
—Geoffrey Skelley, 538
Aug 7, 12:40 AM McDonald Rivet likely to win in Michigan's 8th District Democratic primary
State Sen. Kristen McDonald Rivet came into today the favorite in this race, having raised $1.7 million, and secured an EMILYs List endorsement. While AP has not issued a projection, McDonald Rivet has a commanding lead with 43 percent of the expected vote in. She has 56% of the vote so far, likely an insurmountable lead for former Army Ranger Matt Collier (29 percent) to overcome. State Board of Education President Pamela Pugh has also garnered 16 percent of the vote.
—Meredith Conroy, 538 contributor Aug 7, 12:40 AM Final thought: Progressives take a step back
I won't get cute: The big news from tonight was Bush's loss in Missouri's 1st District. Along with Bowman's loss back in June, two big-name progressive representatives have now lost renomination this year, and the Squad has been pared back from (arguably) nine members to (arguably) seven. That's a big deal for a group that, for years, has seemed ascendant.
That said, a lot of people will blame the Israel-Hamas war for Bush's and Bowman's defeats. While that's valid on some level — AIPAC probably wouldn't have spent so much money against them if it weren't for the Israel issue — both campaigns were fought over more local, domestic concerns. So while these losses were setbacks for the progressive movement, I don't think they were referenda on Israel or anything. —Nathaniel Rakich, 538 Aug 7, 12:36 AM Getting ready to wrap up!
There are just a few key races yet to be projected in Washington state (and um ... Michigan's 13th District, where only 9 percent of the expected vote is in). Those votes will keep trickling in overnight, but we're getting ready to close up shop for now!
What are everyone's final thoughts or takeaways from today's results? —Tia Yang, 538 Aug 7, 12:16 AM Marlinga secures a rematch in Michigan's 10th
The AP has projected that Carl Marlinga will once again be the Democratic nominee in Michigan's 10th District. The 2022 nominee won 48 percent of the vote tonight in the Democratic primary, while his closest competitor, Diane Young, got only 26 percent, with 37 percent of the expected vote reporting. Marlinga will face Republican Rep. John James in November in a district that Trump carried in 2020 by only 1 point.
—Nathaniel Rakich, 538 Aug 7, 12:14 AM Hudson projected to win GOP primary in Michigan's 3rd District
The AP has projected that attorney Paul Hudson will defeat financial adviser Michael Markey in the Republican primary in Michigan's 3rd District. With 56 percent of the expected vote reporting, Hudson leads about 55 percent to 45 percent, and critically he holds a 16-point lead in Kent County (home to Grand Rapids), where most of the race's remaining votes will be tallied. That's left Markey with no potentially favorable turf to hope for a comeback. This sets Hudson up to face Democratic Rep. Hillary Scholten in November in what could be a competitive tilt, although Scholten will start as a favorite in the blue-leaning seat.
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