\u2014 New Mexico: Contests in the state include primaries for congressional seats, a U.S. Senate seat and a long list of statewide offices<\/a>, but the governor\u2019s race is the main attraction. Former Interior Secretary Deb Haaland is running for the Democratic nomination, which could put her on a historic path for Native American leaders<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u2014 New Jersey: One of this year\u2019s most closely watched House midterms<\/a> will take place in the battleground district<\/a> represented by Rep. Tom Kean Jr.<\/a>, who has drawn public scrutiny and concern after missing more than 100 House votes due to an undisclosed medical issue. Voters are deciding which Democrat will run against him in November.<\/p>\n \u2014 Read more about races in Iowa<\/a>, Montana<\/a> and South Dakota<\/a>.<\/p>\n Here’s the latest:<\/p>\n Los Angeles voter says he was excited to vote for Nithya Raman for mayor of Los Angeles<\/strong><\/p>\n Leo Blain, 24, likes Raman\u2019s progressive agenda and believes she can be effective at building coalitions.<\/p>\n \u201cI think she has a really good understanding about how the city of LA works and would be a really effective mayor,\u201d Blain said Tuesday outside his polling place.<\/p>\n But Blain found it hard to get excited about any of the candidates for governor.<\/p>\n He voted for billionaire Tom Steyer because he believes the Democrat has the best shot to win in the November general election.<\/p>\n Los Angeles searches for its next chapter<\/strong><\/p>\n Most of the campaign has focused on issues like rebuilding from the Palisades Fire, affordable housing and persistent homelessness. But there are other, more existential concerns<\/a> as well.<\/p>\n Hollywood jobs have been decamping for years for cheaper filming locations. A downtown renaissance was crushed by extended pandemic closures, and many office buildings remain desperate for tenants.<\/p>\n The city has long struggled to provide basic services, whether paving buckled streets and sidewalks or keeping streetlights on. The restaurant industry has witnessed a long string of high-profile closures. The city\u2019s notorious gridlock continues unabated.<\/p>\n All of this has increased pressure on city leadership as it prepares to host the Olympics in 2028.<\/p>\n Iowa voter is looking for change<\/strong><\/p>\n Wallace McCracken was taking time during his lunch break as an energy company safety manager to vote in Newton, the seat of Jasper County in central Iowa.<\/p>\n The 43-year-old registered Democrat said the nation is at a turning point in 2026, and that he wanted to be part of the direction it turns.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re at a precipice and a changing point,\u201d he said, declining to say for whom he voted in Iowa\u2019s Democratic U.S. Senate primary. \u201cIf people want change to occur, they\u2019ve got to do something about it.\u201d<\/p>\n The married father of a middle-school student described the course of the nation as \u201cstruggling,\u201d in part because he believes government is too tied to corporate interests.<\/p>\n \u201cI would like to see a government did not funnel so much money to private corporations and bend over to lobbyists,\u201d he said, \u201cand, instead, do more for the people directly.”<\/p>\n 2 Democrats hope to replace Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst<\/strong><\/p>\n Zach Wahls and Josh Turek are both state lawmakers running for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by the retiring Republican Ernst.<\/p>\n They agree on a lot. But they each say they\u2019re the better pick<\/a> to win a state that\u2019s dominated by Republicans.<\/p>\n Iowa hasn\u2019t elected a Democrat to the U.S. Senate since Tom Harkin won his last term in 2008.<\/p>\n GOP Rep. Ashley Hinson is endorsed by Trump and Ernst for the Republican nomination. Hinson faces former state Sen. Jim Carlin in the GOP primary.<\/p>\n Another Democratic voter sees Josh Turek as \u2018best positioned\u2019 in November<\/strong><\/p>\n John Smith, 56, said the most important factor in his vote in Iowa\u2019s Democratic primary for U.S. Senate was identifying an individual who would be \u201cbest positioned in the general.\u201d<\/p>\n Smith voted for Josh Turek over Zach Wahls.<\/p>\n The two state lawmakers campaigned on different visions for how to win statewide in November. Democrats want to flip the seat held by retiring Republican Sen. Joni Ernst. U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson, who has the backing of Trump and Ernst, is seeking the GOP nomination.<\/p>\n \u201cIt feels like there\u2019s more opportunity for Democrats to gain ground this year than in past years,\u201d said Smith, who lives in Des Moines.<\/p>\n California governor candidate Tom Steyer sings \u2018I Won\u2019t Back Down\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n Steyer kicked off Pride Month and capped off the last full day of his primary campaign for California governor by belting out Tom Petty\u2019s \u201cI Won\u2019t Back Down.\u201d<\/p>\n A photo he posted on social media shows Steyer, wearing a backward baseball cap, singing karaoke alongside his wife Kat at a bar in the gay enclave of West Hollywood on Monday night.<\/p>\n \u201cI can\u2019t sing,\u201d Steyer wrote Tuesday on X, \u201cbut I can wish you a Happy Pride.\u201d<\/p>\n Steyer, a former hedge fund manager turned liberal activist, has spent millions of his own money as he hopes to advance to the November election.<\/p>\n Will Republican-turned-independent congressman survive California primary?<\/strong><\/p>\n One of California Democrats\u2019 top targets when they redrew the state\u2019s congressional map was Republican Rep. Kevin Kiley. They split his Northern California district in two, tethering each half to more Democratic areas near Sacramento to create two Democratic-leaning seats.<\/p>\n Kiley opted to run in the 6th District, which is crowded with local Democratic candidates. He became an outspoken critic of political gerrymandering and then left the Republican Party to run as an independent. That might be his best shot of survival with the new California map.<\/p>\n Josh Turek\u2019s electability argument resonates with one progressive Iowa voter<\/strong><\/p>\n Emily MacFarland, a Democrat, said she voted Tuesday<\/a> feeling concerned about the nation\u2019s democracy and the state of Iowa. She said she\u2019s glad to see more national attention on the once-competitive state. \u201cI\u2019m just hoping that we can become more purple,\u201d the 49-year-old Des Moines, Iowa, resident said. \u201cI think that Donald Trump is helping out all of the Democrats. This is our chance, honestly.\u201d Like other Iowa Democrats<\/a>, MacFarland said she had a hard time deciding between Josh Turek and Zach Wahls, two state lawmakers competing to be the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate. Being more progressive, she said she normally would\u2019ve voted for Wahls. But ultimately, MacFarland chose Turek, who has said his experience winning a state House race in a red district can translate to success statewide. \u201cI feel that he has a better shot at maybe getting a few Republicans that maybe are not happy with the Republican Party, or lean more independent,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Republicans vying to take on New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker<\/strong><\/p>\n The party has been adrift in the Democratic-leaning state since last year when its Trump-backed candidate for governor lost by double digits.<\/p>\n Voters face a four-way race between attorney Justin Murphy, surgeon Robert Lebovics, Army veteran Richard Tabor and former TV reporter Alex Zdan.<\/p>\n The winner will face Booker, the Democrat who is running for a full third term. Republicans have struggled in Senate contests in New Jersey, which they haven\u2019t won in over five decades.<\/p>\n One Iowa Democrat likes that Zach Wahls won\u2019t \u2018shy away\u2019 from his positions<\/strong><\/p>\n Kristen Anderson, 48, and her 21-year-old daughter, Sydney Baratta of Des Moines, Iowa, both voted on Tuesday for Zach Wahls to be the Democratic nominee<\/a> for U.S. Senate. Anderson said it was a \u201chard call\u201d because there wasn\u2019t anything wrong with Wahls\u2019 competitor, Josh Turek. Many Iowa Democrats felt torn between the two<\/a> state lawmakers who want to flip retiring Republican Sen. Joni Ernst\u2019s seat in November. \u201cI don\u2019t have strong inclination that one of them is necessarily better than the other,\u201d Anderson said. But Wahls is \u201cnot someone whose going to shy away from his stance,\u201d she said. \u201cHe just seems like a good guy, just generally.\u201d Baratta said she wants to see a younger person in office and that she\u2019d be happy with either candidate. But Wahls, she said, brings fresh perspective and a vocal record protecting women\u2019s access to abortion and public education, both important issues to her. \u201cI\u2019m really excited and intrigued by the fact that we might have some younger people in office who can portray my perspective a little bit more realistically,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n San Francisco\u2019s congressional seat is open for the first time in decades<\/strong><\/p>\n Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was the embodiment of the Democratic establishment for some. So it was perhaps natural that a wealthy former software engineer, Saikat Chakrabarti, announced plans to challenge her in her San Francisco district.<\/p>\n Chakrabarti is the founder of Justice Democrats, a group that launches primaries of fellow Democrats from the left, and he\u2019s used the millions he made in Silicon Valley to fund his campaign. But Pelosi, who has been in office for nearly 40 years, is retiring from her 11th District seat, and it\u2019s not clear Chakrabarti will make it to the November ballot.<\/p>\n He faces state Sen. Scott Wiener<\/a>, a well-known lawmaker who has served in San Francisco and the state capitol in Sacramento, and San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan, who has been endorsed by Pelosi.<\/p>\n Los Angeles mayoral candidate Pratt says it\u2019s a two-person race between him and Bass<\/strong><\/p>\n Republican Spencer Pratt is dismissing Nithya Raman\u2019s campaign as \u201cweak\u201d and effectively over. The only real race, he says, is between him and Democratic incumbent Karen Bass.<\/p>\n Raman, a former Bass ally and progressive city council member, is challenging the mayor from the left.<\/p>\n In a social media video posted Monday, Pratt says Raman hasn\u2019t gotten anything done during her six years in city leadership. He calls a vote for Raman a waste.<\/p>\n \u201cAt this point, it\u2019s me and Karen,\u201d Pratt says.<\/p>\n Trump and Vance boost California governor candidate Steve Hilton<\/strong><\/p>\n President Donald Trump on Tuesday urged his followers to vote for Hilton, a former Fox News TV host and British political adviser.<\/p>\n \u201cHe will work with me and the Federal Government, the money will flow because I have confidence in him (but not any of the others!), and we will MAKE CALIFORNIA GREAT AGAIN!\u201d Trump wrote on Truth Social.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Vice President J.D. Vance called Hilton a \u201cgood guy\u201d and encouraged Californians to vote for him.<\/p>\n \u201cCalifornia is such a beautiful state–it just needs better political leadership!\u201d Vance wrote on X.<\/p>\n A progressive challenger to Bass in LA mayor\u2019s race<\/strong><\/p>\n Nithya Raman was once an ally to Bass, but she filed to challenge her as mayor just hours before the filing deadline. Raman described the city as \u201cat a breaking point.\u201d<\/p>\n She has promised to speed up housing construction, bring back entertainment industry jobs and improve services in a city known for dirty streets and buckled pavement.<\/p>\n Raman hasn\u2019t drawn as much national chatter as Pratt, a former reality television star whose supporters have tried to boost his candidacy with AI-generated videos.<\/p>\n Last week, Raman took a shot at that tactic with her own video showing her flanked by supporters. \u201cNo AI was used in the making of this video,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n Some California Democrats aren\u2019t sure who to back for governor<\/strong><\/p>\n The nation\u2019s most populous state is dominated by Democrats, but some are unsure of who to vote for<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m kind of pinching my nose and voting this go-around rather than being excited,\u201d said Colin Culver, a 21-year-old San Diego resident who ultimately voted for Tom Steyer.<\/p>\n It\u2019s been a chaotic campaign, particularly when former Rep. Eric Swalwell dropped out of the race after being accused of sexual assault.<\/p>\n Paul Mitchell, a Democratic strategist tracking ballot returns, said some voters \u201care holding onto the ballot because they have seen this kind of topsy-turvy governor\u2019s race,\u201d and \u201cthey\u2019re waiting to make sure they\u2019re making the right choice.\u201d<\/p>\n The Democratic primary for New Mexico governor has been combative<\/strong><\/p>\n Two Democrats are seeking their party\u2019s nomination to replace Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, a term-limited Democrat who will leave office at the end of 2026. Sam Bregman<\/a>, an Albuquerque-based district attorney, is campaigning on his law enforcement record and promises to stand up to the Trump administration.<\/p>\n Former congresswoman and U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland<\/a> has emphasized her ancestral roots in the state and experience working in the nation\u2019s capital.<\/p>\n Haaland leads Bregman in fundraising by a wide margin, but the primary has become increasingly combative. Bregman\u2019s campaign has seized on the fact that Haaland has declined multiple opportunities to debate him. Meanwhile Haaland\u2019s campaign has cast Bregman as out of touch with everyday New Mexicans, highlighting his personal wealth.<\/p>\n Karen Bass wants a second term as Los Angeles mayor<\/strong><\/p>\n By any measure, Bass\u2019 first term has been challenging. The worst wildfire in city history began while she was traveling with a presidential delegation in Ghana. Homelessness continues to be a challenge.<\/p>\n \u201cI haven\u2019 always got it right,\u201d Bass says.<\/p>\n But now she wants a second term<\/a>, which would allow her to keep leading the city of 4 million people as it hosts the Olympics in 2028.<\/p>\n Bass is facing challenges from the left and the right. Progressive city council member Nithya Raman and Republican reality television personality Spencer Pratt are among the 14 names on the ballot.<\/p>\n With so many candidates, no one is likely to get a majority of the vote on Tuesday, meaning the election would be settled by a November runoff between the top two.<\/p>\n Battleground contest brewing in New Jersey district<\/strong><\/p>\n One of the most closely watched House races in this year\u2019s midterms is unfolding in the New Jersey district represented by Rep. Tom Kean Jr.<\/a>, who\u2019s been absent from votes for nearly three months.<\/p>\n Kean is running unopposed in the Republican primary, where he\u2019s has Trump\u2019s support. But his absence<\/a> because of an undisclosed personal medical issue has generated outsized interest in the contest.<\/p>\n Kean is seeking a third term.<\/p>\n Trump says absent congressman is \u2018working tirelessly\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n Republican Rep. Tom Kean Jr. is running unopposed in the primary for New Jersey\u2019s 7th congressional district on Tuesday. But he\u2019s facing growing scrutiny for an unexplained medical absence that has stretched for more than three months, causing him to miss more than 100 votes in Congress.<\/p>\n Trump weighed in on social media late Monday, saying Kean was \u201cworking tirelessly\u201d to support the MAGA agenda.<\/p>\n Though Kean isn\u2019t facing any GOP competition today, he\u2019s seeking reelection this fall in one of the few genuinely competitive congressional districts left on the map. Several Democrats vying to take him on in the general election have made his absence \u2014 and the lack of clarity surrounding it \u2014 a central part of their message.<\/p>\n Democrats hope to dislodge GOP incumbent by redrawing his California district<\/strong><\/p>\n Every two years, the attention of the nation\u2019s political class is riveted on a Democratic-leaning congressional district in California\u2019s Central Valley. Republican Rep. David Valadao has been able to fend off repeated Democratic challengers, except in 2018, when he barely lost. But he ran again two years later and reclaimed the seat.<\/p>\n Democrats redrew the district to make it even tougher for Valadao. They recruited a moderate who represents the area in the state capital, Assemblywoman Jasmeet Bains, to run against him. But she\u2019s had to battle a more liberal rival, political science professor and school board member Randy Villegas. The primary will determine Valadao\u2019s next opponent.<\/p>\n California uses a top-2 primary system<\/strong><\/p>\n That means all candidates are on the same ballot, regardless of their party affiliation. California has used that system for more than a decade.<\/p>\n It\u2019s occasionally resulted in two candidates from the same party competing against each other in a general election. That happened most notably in U.S. Senate races in 2016 and 2018, when two Democrats faced off.<\/p>\n In the governor\u2019s race, though, one Republican and one Democrat have always advanced to November. Democrats had feared a lockout<\/a> this year given their large field of candidates. But those worries have diminished in the race\u2019s closing weeks.<\/p>\n Republican candidates for governor say California needs a change<\/strong><\/p>\n A Democrat has held the governor\u2019s office since 2011, when Jerry Brown took over from Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger.<\/p>\n Democrats have also had a firm grip on the state Legislature.<\/p>\n Republicans Steve Hilton and Chad Bianco say that means Democrats are to blame for the state\u2019s expensive gas and housing, its homelessness crisis and a slew of other problems. Both have pledged to reduce regulations and taxes.<\/p>\n Hilton has President Donald Trump\u2019s backing. That could help him in the primary but hurt him in the general election in the heavily Democratic state.<\/p>\n Republicans will fight hard to keep the Iowa US Senate seat<\/strong><\/p>\n Holding on to Iowa is a big part of the GOP\u2019s plan to keep its U.S. Senate majority.<\/p>\n A super PAC affiliated with Senate Republicans has pledged $29 million to help ensure the seat stays in GOP hands.<\/p>\n California uses a top-2 primary system<\/strong><\/p>\n That means all candidates are on the same ballot, regardless of their party affiliation. California has used that system for more than a decade.<\/p>\n It has occasionally resulted in two candidates from the same party competing against each other in a general election. That happened most notably in U.S. Senate races in 2016 and 2018, when two Democrats faced off.<\/p>\n In the governor\u2019s race, though, one Republican and one Democrat have always advanced to November. Democrats had feared a lockout<\/a> this year, given their large field of candidates. But those worries have diminished in the race\u2019s closing weeks.<\/p>\n 5 Republicans want to be Iowa governor<\/strong><\/p>\n The candidates are U.S. Rep. Randy Feenstra<\/a>, state Rep. Eddie Andrews, businessman and former conservative political director Zach Lahn, former state Rep. Brad Sherman and former director of the state Department of Administrative Services Adam Steen.<\/p>\n If no candidate earns at least 35% of Republican primary voters, the nominee would be selected at a contested state party convention.<\/p>\n Trump endorsed Feenstra on Friday, saying on social media that \u201cRandy is MAGA all the way!\u201d<\/p>\n 2 veteran California US House members draw generational challenges<\/strong><\/p>\n The generational fighting that has been ripping through the Democratic Party continues in California\u2019s primaries.<\/p>\n In the Los Angeles-area\u2019s 32nd District, 42-year-old lawyer Jake Levine is challenging Brad Sherman, 71, a 15-term member of the House of Representatives.<\/p>\n And in the 7th District near Sacramento, 40-year-old city councilwoman Mai Vang is challenging Doris Matsui, 81, who has held the seat since her husband, a congressman himself for decades, died in 2005.<\/p>\n California Democrat\u2019s spending dwarfed his rivals<\/strong><\/p>\n Tom Steyer, the former hedge fund manager turned climate activist, spent nearly $200 million of his money on advertising alone.<\/p>\n The billionaire\u2019s ad campaign was the most expensive in the country by far this election cycle. The data comes from advertising tracker AdImpact.<\/p>\n Steyer\u2019s rivals in the governor\u2019s race and his critics have accused him of trying to buy the election.<\/p>\n But he\u2019s defended his spending, saying he is fighting against powerful corporate interests that are driving up the price of living in the state. Pacific Gas & Electric, a major California utility, is among the corporations and business interests funding anti-Steyer ads.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m only working for the people of California,\u201d Steyer said last week.<\/p>\n 3 Republicans seek party nomination for New Mexico governor<\/strong><\/p>\n They are former mayor of fast-growing Rio Rancho Gregg Hull<\/a>, cannabis business owner Duke Rodriguez<\/a> and public relations professional Doug Turner.<\/p>\n While Hull and Turner have not aligned their campaigns with the MAGA movement, Rodriguez was recently served a cease-and-desist letter from a law firm representing Trump for \u201cdeceptive use\u201d of the president\u2019s image in campaign materials. That contest’s winner faces an uphill battle to win in a state where a Republican has not been elected to statewide office in 10 years.<\/p>\n a state that\u2019s home to Hollywood, there isn\u2019t much star power in California\u2019s gubernatorial race. It\u2019s a somewhat different story in Los Angeles, where a reality television personality is running for mayor as the city prepares to host the Olympics. More primaries are being held on Tuesday as well. Democrats are banking on a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":131527,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5734],"tags":[],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-131526","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-associated-press"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/131526","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=131526"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/131526\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":131578,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/131526\/revisions\/131578"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/131527"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=131526"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=131526"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=131526"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=131526"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}