Primaries test redistricting fights and Trump’s influence
Voters in Utah, Maryland and New York are choosing nominees, while South Carolina holds runoffs after close June 9 primaries.
By Lucas Ferreira · Science & Environment Writer
3 min read
Voters in Utah, Maryland and New York are choosing nominees Tuesday, while South Carolina Republicans settle a gubernatorial runoff. The contests will shape fall races for Congress and state offices less than five months before midterm elections that could decide control of the US House, Al Jazeera reported.
In Utah, the main focus is a newly redrawn 1st Congressional District centered on Salt Lake County. Al Jazeera reported that the district is Utah’s first Democratic-leaning congressional seat since 2021, after a court required the state to use a map that did not split the county across multiple districts.
Utah’s four House seats are now held by Republicans. The GOP nominee in the 1st District is Riley Owen, a former Navy Reserve intelligence officer and Trump White House staffer, according to Al Jazeera.
Democrats have a four-candidate primary. Ben McAdams, a former Salt Lake City mayor and the last Democrat to represent Utah in Congress, leads in polling, while state Senator Nate Blouin is running as a progressive focused on climate policy and housing costs, Al Jazeera reported. Because the Democratic primary is open to voters regardless of party, state election officials have seen ballot requests in the district run at more than four times the usual rate, according to the report.
In Maryland, state Senate President Bill Ferguson faces a Democratic primary challenge tied to redistricting. Ferguson, a former teacher first elected to the Senate in 2011, has led the chamber for six years and is seeking a fourth term, Al Jazeera reported.
The challenge follows Ferguson’s refusal last year to support a Democratic push to redraw Maryland’s congressional map. In an October letter cited by Al Jazeera, Ferguson said the legal risk was too high and warned that a court could end up controlling the map if a Democratic plan were struck down. His challenger, Baltimore progressive Bobby LaPin, has criticized him over that decision, according to Al Jazeera.
South Carolina is holding runoffs after several June 9 primaries ended with no candidate above 50 percent. The most prominent race is the Republican contest for governor, where Lieutenant Governor Pamela Evette and Attorney General Alan Wilson advanced with 28.9 percent and 26.1 percent of the vote, respectively, Al Jazeera reported.
Outgoing Governor Henry McMaster cannot run again because of term limits. Al Jazeera reported that no Democrat has held South Carolina’s governorship since 2003, making the Republican runoff a central race in the state.
President Donald Trump first endorsed Evette on May 29, writing on Truth Social that she had his “Complete and Total Endorsement.” On Friday, he endorsed both Evette and Wilson, saying he could not hurt one by backing only the other, according to Al Jazeera.
In New York, eight Democrats are competing to replace Representative Jerry Nadler in the 12th Congressional District, which covers central Manhattan. Nadler, 79, has represented parts of New York City in the House since 1992 and announced last September that he would retire at the end of the year, Al Jazeera reported.
The field includes George Conway, a former Republican activist who has recast himself as a Democrat after breaking with Trump; Jack Schlossberg, a writer and grandson of President John F Kennedy; and state Assembly members Alex Bores and Micah Lasher. Lasher is running on his government experience, including work for Nadler and former Mayor Michael Bloomberg, while Bores has made artificial intelligence regulation a central campaign issue, Al Jazeera reported.
Polls show a close New York race, and Al Jazeera reported that the outcome remained uncertain heading into Tuesday’s vote.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.