Key Election Races in Georgia, Oregon, Kentucky, and Idaho: May Spotlight

Voters in Oregon and Kentucky head to the polls on Tuesday, where they’ll vote in their state’s presidential and congressional primaries. In Georgia and Idaho, voters will decide on congressional races and a handful of local races.

On Thursday, Idaho voters head back to the polls for the Democratic caucus. Trump previously won Idaho’s Republican caucus in March.

With President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump already the presumptive nominees for the Democratic Party and GOP, respectively, most of the attention will be on the congressional and local races.

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Fani Willis, the district attorney in Fulton County, Georgia, who is prosecuting former President Donald Trump over allegations that he attempted to overturn the 2020 race, is in the fight for her political career.

In Oregon, two House Democratic parties feature a showdown between the progressive wing of the party against more centrist candidates.

Here are the key races to watch:

Democrats battle over Oregon’s 5th Congressional District

Oregon’s 5th Congressional District is one of the few races that will determine which party determines control of the House during the November election.

Democrat Jamie McLeod-Skinner is running for Congress for a third time on Tuesday. The Oregon Democrat defeated Rep. Kurt Schrader (D-OR) in the 2022 primary but went on to lose to Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R-OR) during the 2022 midterm elections by fewer than 7,300 votes.

Chavez-DeRemer is the first Latina congresswoman from Oregon, and Republicans are counting on her seat to help keep control of the House.

McLeod-Skinner, a progressive attorney and engineer, faces competition from state Rep. Janelle Bynum, who could become the state’s first black member of Congress if she prevails in the primary and the general election matchup against Chavez-DeRemer.

Bynum is largely backed by congressional Democrats and Gov. Tina Kotek (D-OR), who believe she is better able to flip the seat back from Republicans.

Another Jayapal seeks office in Oregon’s 3rd Congressional District

Oregon’s 3rd Congressional District, home to liberal Portland, will feature its first open Democratic primary since 1996 on Tuesday as candidates battle to replace outgoing Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR).

Susheela Jayapal, the older sister of Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), is a top contender in the primary along with state Rep. Maxine Dexter and Gresham City Councilor Eddy Morales.

Voters for Responsive Government, a political action committee, has spent $2.3 million against the older Jayapal in the primary. The American Israel Public Affairs Committee has also targeted Susheela Jayapal through 314 Action due to concerns that she supports a ceasefire in Israel’s battle against Hamas.

Although the seat is safely Democratic, three Republicans, Joann Harbour, Teresa Orwig, and Gary Dye, are vying for the GOP primary.

Protest votes against Biden and Trump in Kentucky

Biden and Trump face no real competition in the primary race in Kentucky on Tuesday after already clinching the nominations two months ago.

But Kentucky voters have the option to vote “uncommitted” against Biden and Trump. Biden has long been plagued by angry Democrats who disapprove of his handling of the Israel-Hamas war and have chosen to vote “uncommitted.”

Trump, meanwhile, is plagued by GOP voters who are voting for Nikki Haley more than two months after she exited the 2024 race. In red Kentucky, all eyes are waiting to see how many voters thumb their nose at Trump in the primary.

Oregon doesn’t have an uncommitted option on the ballot Tuesday, but it does allow voters to write in a candidate’s name if they don’t wish to vote for Biden or Trump.

Rep. Thomas Massie seeks to fend off primary challenger

After antagonizing the leaders of the GOP in recent years, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) is facing a primary challenge on Tuesday from Republicans Eric Deters (a Trump supporter) and Michael McGinnis.

Massie, who represents Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District, was one of the Republicans, along with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), who pushed for House Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-LA) ouster earlier this month. The move proved unsuccessful.

Massie also earned the ire of Trump by backing primary rival Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) and holding up COVID-19 pandemic relief.

The Kentucky Republican is also facing negative spending from AIPAC, which has poured $328,675 into attack ads against Massie for his votes on pro-Israel legislation.

Yet the former president has not endorsed any opponent in the primary.

Fani Willis fights for her political career

Four years ago, attorney Christian Wise Smith lost Georgia’s Fulton County district attorney Democratic primary against Willis.

On Tuesday, the two candidates will face off against each other again. But this time, Willis is in a fight to keep her job as district attorney and continue prosecuting Trump after a scandal involving a romantic relationship with Nathan Wade, a special prosecutor on the Trump case.

Judge Scott McAfee ruled in March that Willis could continue to prosecute Trump, but Wade would need to be removed from his role in the case.

Last week, the Georgia Court of Appeals agreed to a review from Trump’s team over whether Willis can keep her job as the top prosecutor against Trump.

Republican lawyer Courtney Kramer is also running in the GOP primary for district attorney and is expected to advance to the general election.

Georgia incumbent judges battle for another term

Judge Scott McAfee, who oversees the Georgia case against Trump, is facing a challenge from Robert Patillo, a civil rights lawyer and radio show host.

McAfee was facing another challenge from Tiffani Johnson, a former senior staff attorney for Fulton County Judge Melynee Leftridge, but she was disqualified from the primary in April after failing to appear at a hearing on a challenge to her eligibility.

Incumbent Georgia Supreme Court Justice Andrew Pinson, whom Gov. Brian Kemp (R-GA) appointed to the state Supreme Court in 2022, faces a competitive battle from former Democratic Rep. John Barrow.

Barrow’s challenge is unusual, given the conventional wisdom that justices run for reelection unopposed.

Barrow is making the race a fight over abortion rights in Georgia but has faced some blowback for politicizing a nonpartisan race.

Kemp is campaigning for Pinson and has pledged $500,000 to boost the incumbent justice.

Reps. Lucy McBath and David Scott face party challengers

Democratic candidates are challenging incumbents Reps. Lucy McBath (D-GA) and David Scott (D-GA) in Georgia’s Tuesday primaries.

McBath is running for the state’s newly redrawn 6th Congressional District after previously representing the 7th Congressional District for the last two years.

The Georgia Democrat was first elected to Congress to represent the 6th District in 2020. But after the maps were redrawn in 2021, she jumped to the 7th District for the 2022 midterm elections and defeated former Democratic Georgia Rep. Carolyn Bourdeaux.

Now as McBath returns to run for the 6th District, she is facing challenges from Cobb County Commissioner Jerica Richardson and state Rep. Mandisha Thomas.

Scott, who represents this state’s 13th District, is facing six challengers in the Democratic primary on Tuesday.

Scott, at 78 years old, is seeking a 12th term in office but is facing concerns that he may be too old for office, a complaint that has been lobbied against Biden in his reelection campaign.

Marcus Flowers, who unsuccessfully ran against Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (D-GA) in 2022, former South Fulton City Councilman Mark Baker, and former East Point City Councilwoman Karen Rene are among the Democrats facing off against Scott.

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GOP fights to replace Rep. Drew Ferguson

Brian Jack, who served as Trump’s White House political director, is running in the GOP primary to replace outgoing Rep. Drew Ferguson (R-GA), who represented the state’s 3rd District.

Jack has Trump’s endorsement, but the former president has a mixed track record in the Peach State. Four other Republicans are also seeking the GOP nomination, including former state Sens. Mike Crane and Mike Dugan, former state Rep. Philip Singleton, and activist Jim Bennett.

If no candidate wins the majority on Tuesday, then the top two candidates head to a June 18 runoff.

The seat is solidly Republican, although Val Almonord and Maura Keller are running in the Democratic primary.