For your delectation, and before we have some well-deserved server downtime (which should be invisible to readers, but will likely inhibit emissions from the running-squirrel contingent here behind the curtain), here are some updates from the latest edition of Primary Night in America.
In the GOP Senate races:
*UPDATE*: AP has now called Mississippi for Cochran with nearly 99% of the vote in. Looks like this as of 11:15 EDT/10:15 CDT:
Will this presidential election be the most important in American history?
Cochran: 50.8% (184,310 votes)
McDaniel: 49.2% (178,642 votes)
Presumably Fox etc won’t be far behind.
What say you, LUers? A general fizzle for the GOP insurgency on today’s results?
Chris McDaniel has closed it up, as expected, with Thad Cochran in the Mississippi runoff. At this point, with 96.8% of the vote in, it is still too close to call.
Cochran: 50.6%
McDaniel: 49.4%
In the special Oklahoma race to replace retiring Senator Tom Coburn, Jim Lankford has resoundingly defeated the challenge from Tea Party-backed T.W. Shannon. Lankford was elected to the U.S. House as a limited-government conservative, and has enjoyed wide support on that basis. His victory in the Senate primary is by no means a blow to Tea Party hopes. With 98% of the vote in:
Lankford: 57.5%
Shannon: 34.3%
(The balance has gone to the 5 other candidates in the GOP primary.)
In gubernatorial races:
The GOP primary in Colorado is being called by everyone for Beauprez at this point. The spoiler roles of Gessler and Kop will bear some analysis afterward. They’ve each drawn a healthy percentage. With nearly 74% of the vote in:
Beauprez 30.6%
Tancredo 26.3%
Gessler 23.4%
Kopp 19.6%
In Maryland‘s GOP race, I can only find that about half the precints are in at this point. Hogan is well up on Craig, and I don’t think anyone expects the lagging candidates (Lollar and George) to make big gains as the count improves. At 50% reporting:
Hogan 42.0%
Craig 31.0%
Lollar 15.7%
George 11.3
In just a few select House primaries:
In Colorado-4 (GOP), with 66% reporting:
Buck 44.2%
Renfroe 24.0%
In the Florida-19 special election, a winner has been decided:
Republican Clawson 67.0%
Democrat Freeman 29.3%
New York-13 (Democrat) primary, with 49% reporting:
Rangel 47.6%
Espaillat 44.9%
New York-22 (GOP) runoff, with 88% reporting — still very close! *UPDATE* Separated by fewer than 2,000 votes, but Hanna holds on for the win:
Hanna 52.8%
Tenney 47.2%
Oklahoma-5 GOP (replacing Lankford, who will now run for Senate in the general election), with 97% reporting; looks like a runoff will be required:
Russell 26.6%
Douglas 24.4%
(4 other candidates, none of whom broke 20%)
So: Talk amongst yourselves.
