The Alabama Senate primary was the marquise contest on Tuesday, as a handful of states across the South held primaries or run-offs, and a Texas House race last month that proceeded to a recount resulted in a landslide victory. establishment. The Alabama Senate race saw a series of upheavals involving former President Donald J. Trump, who made the 2022 qualifying season in a rolling referendum on his influence. Mr. Trump has carefully guarded his record of Republican winners in the primary, and his changing faith in Alabama was one of the best examples of his obsession with winning – and avoiding defeat – before the 2024 presidential campaign. who continues to tease loudly. But in Georgia, where Mr. Trump suffered the most serious political setbacks in 2022 last month, the former president continued to lose as two pro-congressional candidates lost their second round on Tuesday. However, even in races where Trump’s select candidates have stumbled this year, those who defeated them in the by-elections have seldom broken with the former president. Many have run as Trump allies even without his official support. In Alabama, Mr. Trump initially offered his “full and complete support” to Spokesman Mo Brooks, an ally in Congress who led the effort to overthrow the 2020 election and who spoke at a Jan. 6, 2021, rally near the White House. that preceded. the riot at the Capitol. Katie Britt speaks to supporters in Montgomery, Ala, on Tuesday. Credit … Charity Rachelle for the New York Times But when Mr. Brooks went to the polls, Mr. Trump canceled that approval that led to the first round of voting in May. The former president claimed that it was because Mr. Brooks had stopped fully embracing his lies about the 2020 election. In the end, Mr. Trump backed Ms. Britt, who cuts a more traditional Republican profile as a former a congressman, lobbyist and former chairman of the Alabama Business Council. Ms. Britt, who has been pushing privately for approval, finished well ahead of the May primaries, with nearly 45 percent, almost enough to avoid a run-off. She was a strong first in the polls when Mr. Trump approved her earlier this month. “Alabama has spoken,” Ms Britt said in a victory speech in Montgomery, Ala, on Tuesday night. “We want new blood.” Ms. Britt added that she entered the fight despite the negatives who told her: “You are very young. Wait your turn. ” Mr. Trump scored several decisive victories in the 2022 Senate qualifiers: Dr. Mehmet Oz in Pennsylvania, Jay Dee Vance in Ohio, Herschel Walker in Georgia and spokesman Ted Bad in North Carolina. He did worse in the governor’s fights, losing to Georgia, Idaho and Nebraska. In the Pennsylvania governor’s race, as well as in the Alabama Senate race, Mr. Trump belatedly backed a candidate to claim a political victory. More than $ 41 million was spent on TV commercials in the Alabama race, with about twice as much money for ads backing Ms. Britt as Mr. Brooks, according to AdImpact, a company that monitors advertising spending. Ms. Britt ran as a Christian conservative, with the cross on her necklace clearly visible in many of her TV commercials, including one she returned to the border as she vowed to “fight to end President Trump’s wall.” Without Trump’s support, Mr. Brooks campaigned against Sen. Mitch McConnell, the Republican leader of the Senate, saying Mr. Trump was “deceived” by the Republican in Kentucky and accusing Trump of infidelity. He held his party on election night in a closed shooting range in Huntsville, Alaa, on Tuesday and was not in a charity mood. “Voters spoke, but they did not speak wisely,” Brooks said, adding of the groups that spent money on Britt. They rule Washington, DC They rule the political debate. “ In Georgia and Virginia, voters helped determine the direction of the Republican Party in a series of key congressional rallies, creating rallies that were closely watched in November. And in Washington, DC, Mayor Muriel Bowser defeated three key rivals in her bid to become the nation’s capital’s first mayor since Marion Barry won three consecutive terms in the 1990s. Muriel Bowser, left, the mayor of Washington, DC, greeted New York Sen. Chuck Schumer, right, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi during a rally against armed violence in Washington. Credit … Shuran Huang for the New York Times In Texas, a fierce Democratic clash in the Laredo border area erupted on Tuesday, almost a month after the May 24 run-off, as representative Henry Cuellar, a moderate, survived a second consecutive major challenge from Jessica Cisneros, a lawyer. that was once I hold. A recount by the Democratic Party of Texas found that Mr. Quelar won by 289 votes. For Mr. Trump, Georgia has proven to be his most challenging state in 2022. Gov. Brian Kemp, a Republican who Trump’s top target for defeat in the run-up to the 2020 election, won re-election by an overwhelming majority last month, easily sending a Trump-backed challenger. That same night, the former president saw his election as secretary of state, insurance commissioner and attorney general in Georgia defeated by Republican incumbents aligning himself with Mr. Kemp. Mr. Trump’s election as vice president and U.S. Senate did win open races in May. But on Tuesday, two of Mr. Trump’s choices for the House races were lost in Georgia. In the 10th District of Georgia, Vernon Jones – a longtime Democrat who supported Mr. Trump in 2020, became a Republican and now calls himself “Black Donald Trump” – lost to Mike Collins, the son of a former lawmaker, in a highly contested . The Collins campaign distributed rape whistles in the name of Mr. Jones to draw attention to a specific allegation in 2005 and a history of misconduct against women. Mr Jones lodged a complaint with police against Mr Collins, claiming the tweet was threatening. Mike Collins, left, and Vernon Jones spoke at a discussion in Atlanta earlier this month. Credit … Brynn Anderson / Associated Press Mr. Jones initially ran for governor, but jumped into the House race under the direction of Mr. Trump, who had backed him. Mr Kemp had backed Mr Collins, again putting the governor of Georgia at odds with the former president. In the redesigned Sixth Circuit, which is currently held by a Democrat but re-elected to a Republican seat, Jake Evans, a lawyer, lost a doctor to Rich McCormick. Mr. Trump backed Mr. Evans, the son of a former ambassador appointed by Mr. Trump. But Mr. Trump’s personal defeats were not necessarily a sign that the party base was in any way ready to leave his wider movement. Mr. Collins, for example, ran as a Republican “in favor of Trump” and a McCormick ad called him a “America First” candidate. The former president chose to stay out of a third Republican-controlled qualifying process in the southwestern corner of Georgia. Jeremy Hunt, a 28-year-old veteran who has won national support as a young black Republican, handed over late Tuesday to Chris West, a member of the Georgia National Guard. The result was seen as an upset, as Mr Hunt had risen 10 times more than Mr West and finished in first place in the first round of voting last month. Mr. West will now face Sanford Bishop Jr., a Democrat whom Republicans consider vulnerable this fall. Also in Georgia, State Representative Bee Nguyen won the Democratic nomination for Secretary of State over Dee Dawkins-Haigler, a former state legislator. Ms Nguyen finished first in the primary and has since won the approval of Stacey Abrams, the Democratic nominee for governor. Ms Nguyen will face Georgia’s Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, who turned down a Trump-inspired primary in May and starred in a Jan. 6 hearing in Washington on Tuesday. Mr. Trump. efforts to overthrow the 2020 election. Despite his actions refusing to bow to Mr. Trump, Democrats are targeting Mr. Raffensperger in the fall for his support for more restrictive voting laws in the state. In Virginia, Republicans nominated their candidates in two House races where the current Democrats – Abigail Spanberger and Elaine Luria – are vulnerable because of the national political environment and the new constituencies. Jen Kiggans celebrated after winning the Republican nomination for a seat in Virginia Beach on Tuesday night. Credit … Carlos Bernate for the New York Times At the headquarters of Mrs. Luria, who is based in Virginia Beach and became less Democratic in re-mapping, Republicans backed State Sen. Jen Kiggans, who defeated Navy veteran Jarome Bell. Mr. Bell had received a belated boost from an ad that appears to be a Democrat-backed effort to field a candidate the Democrats believe could be more easily defeated in November. Mr Bell, who has denied the legitimacy of the 2020 election, called for checks to be made in all 50 states and for “all those involved” to be “executed”. In place of Ms. Spanberger, Yesli Vega, a Prince William’s county overseer who was ratified by Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, finished first in the six-party primary, creating what is expected to be a hot race this fall. Ms. Spanberger and Ms. Luria, who are part of the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack, were elected in 2018, the first by-election under Mr. Trump, when Democrats came to power. Now they seek to survive in 2022, as polls …
