What states are holding midterm primary elections on 28 June 2022?
Five states hold primary elections on Tuesday to decide who will be on the ballot in the 2022 Midterm Elections that could change who controls Congress.
The primaries for the 2022 Midterm Elections got underway in Texas at the beginning of March. So far twenty-six states have held their first round of primary elections to determine who will be on the ballot in November to decide the balance of power in Washington and state capitols buildings.
On Tuesday, voters in five more states, Colorado, Illinois, New York, Oklahoma and Utah, will head to the polls to make their voices heard. Here’s a look at important races taking place in these states.
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Colorado
Two of the most important races in Colorado will be which Republican candidates are chosen to run against the incumbent Democratic governor, Jared Polis, and sitting US senator, Michael Bennet, also a Democrat. Both will be hoping that voters choose the GOP candidate further to the right which could improve their odds in November of seeing off a Republican challenger.
The dividing line in between Colorado Republican candidates, as well as in other states, is whether they believe the results of the 2020 elections. The state has been trending blue in recent years, but even so, Senator Bennet has admitted that he could be facing a “tough race” to hold onto his seat this fall in the face of a predicted “red wave”.
Another race to watch is if firebrand and one of the most outspoken Trump supporters in the US Congress, Representative Lauren Boebert, can see off her first challenge from a moderate Republican, State Senator Don Coram.
Illinois
Governor JB Pritzker is up for re-election this year, and to avoid a tough race to serve another four years he and the Pritzker-funded Democratic Governors Association have plumped a whopping $35 million to aid the campaign of the MAGA-aligned candidate Darren Bailey and derail the $50 million campaign of establishment GOP candidate Richard Irvin. The tactic appears to have worked with Bailey ahead in the polls by a comfortable lead going into Tuesday’s vote.
New York
Although Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is up for re-election this year, neither he nor the GOP candidate are being challenged in the primaries. The main focus will be on the Governor’s race where Kathy Hochul, the serving governor, is looking to secure a spot on November’s ballot to be elected to her first full term in office. She is a centrist Democrat who ascended to the state’s top job when Andrew Cuomo resigned in disgrace amid a sexual harassment scandal.
Oklahoma
The main race to watch on Tuesday in Oklahoma is the one to chose who the Republican nominee in a special election will be to replace retiring Senator Jim Inhofe. The field is wide open with a crowded field of GOP candidates vying for the position. If no one candidate gets over 50 percent of the vote, the top two will face off in a second round runoff in August.
Utah
Incumbent Senator Mike Lee is facing two primary challengers vying to replace the Trump-backed candidate. Republicans Ally Isom and Becky Edwards have both been critical of the former president.