By Peter Brath and Danny Restivo

Eight states held primaries on Tuesday, June 5th, while five had races that decided gubernatorial candidates for the general election in November. Meanwhile, New Jersey had primary races for one senate seat and all 12 congressional districts.

California

Democratic Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom and Republican businessman John Cox will face each other in the California gubernatorial election in November after taking the top two spots in the state primary Tuesday night. Newsom took 33 percent, while Cox had 26 percent. Newsom and Cox will look to succeed term-limited Governor Jerry Brown.

California has an open primary, meaning all registered voters may vote and there are no party races. The primary is non-partisan, meaning the top two finishers in the race advance to the general election, regardless of party affiliation. Because of this unique system, there were over two dozen candidates on the ballot for governor in California, and many Republicans in the state were concerned they would be locked out of the race if Democrats took the top two spots.

The Cook Political Report and Inside Elections have categorized the general election as “Solid Democratic.”

Iowa

Fred Hubbell, a longtime Democratic donor, beat out four other candidates on Tuesday night by capturing more than half the vote. Hubbell will face off against Republican incumbent Kim Reynolds, who didn’t have a primary challenger. While serving as Lieutenant Governor, Reynolds assumed office in May 2017, after former Governor Terry Branstad left office to become U.S. Ambassador to China. As a result, Branstad became the first female governor in Hawkeye history.

The Cook Political Report has categorized the race as “Likely Republican,” while Inside Elections has categorized the general election as “Lean Republican.”

Alabama

Incumbent Governor Kay Ivey defeated Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle and three other opponents to capture the Republican nomination Tuesday night. In the Democratic Primary, Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox took nearly 55 percent of the vote, defeating former Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court Sue Bell Cobb, and former State Representative James C. Fields. Ivey became governor last year after Robert Bentley resigned due to a sex scandal that nearly saw him impeached. Despite U.S. Sen. Doug Jones’ win in December, Alabama is still a very red state and Ivey should have no trouble winning this fall.

The Cook Political Report and Inside Elections have categorized the general election as “Solid Republican.”

New Mexico

Democratic Congresswoman Michelle Lujan Grisham won nearly two-thirds of her party’s vote Tuesday evening and defeated Jeff Apodaca, the son of former New Mexico Gov. Jerry Apodaca, to win the Democratic nomination for governor. Grisham will face Republican Steve Pearce, a former New Mexico congressman who ran unopposed in the GOP primary. The winner will replace Republican Governor Susana Martinez, who has reached her two-term limits.

The Cook Political Report and Inside Elections have categorized the general elections as “Lean Democratic.”

 

South Dakota:

Congresswoman Kristi Noem defeated South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley Tuesday night after a hard-fought campaign. Noem carried 56 percent of the vote, while Jackley had 44 percent. He took the counties surrounding Rapid City, while Noem carried most rural counties and Sioux Falls. She will now face South Dakota Senate Minority Leader Billie Sutton, who ran unopposed on the Democratic ticket.

The Cook Political Report and Inside Elections have categorized the general election as “Solid Republican”

New Jersey Senate and House Primaries

Senate

Democratic:

• Bob Menendez: 62.2% (Incumbent)
  

  Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ)

• Lisa McCormick: 37.8%

Republican:

• Bob Hugin: 75.1%
• Brian Goldberg: 24.9%

House

District 1

Democratic:

• Donald Norcross: 84.0% (Incumbent)
• Robert Carlson: 9.8%
• Scot Tomaszewski: 6.2%

Republican:

• Paul Dilks (Unopposed)

District 2

Democratic:

• Jeff Van Drew: 55.4%
• Tanzie Youngblood: 19.2%
• William Cunningham: 16.8%
• Nate Kleinman: 8.6%

Republican:

• Seth Grossman: 39%
• Hirsh Singh: 30.5%
• Sam Fiocchi: 23.4%
• Robert Turkavage: 7.1%

District 3

Democratic:

• Andy Kim (Unopposed)

Republican:

• Tom MacArthur (Unopposed, Incumbent)

District 4

Democratic:

• Joshua Welle: 57.2%
• Jim Keady: 42.8%

Republican:

• Chris Smith (Unopposed, Incumbent)

District 5

Democratic:

• Josh Gottheimer (Unopposed, Incumbent)

Republican:

• John McCann: 53%
• Steve Lonegan: 47%

District 6

Democratic:

• Frank Pallone: 86.3% (Incumbent)
• Javahn Walker: 13.7%

Republican:

• Richard Pezzullo (Unopposed)

District 7

Democratic

• Tom Malinowski: 66.8%
• Peter Jacob: 19.1%
• Goutam Jois: 14.1%

Republican

• Leonard Lance: 74.9% (Incumbent)
• Lindsay Brown: 14.4%
• Raafat Barsoom: 10.7%

District 8

Democratic:

• Albio Sires (Unopposed, Incumbent)

Republican:

• John Muniz (Unopposed)

District 9

Democratic:

• Bill Pascrell: 85.7%
• William Henry: 14.3%

Republican:

• Eric Fisher (Unopposed)

District 10

Democratic:

• Donald Payne: 91.7% (Incumbent)
• Aaron Fraser: 8.3%

Republican:

• Agha Khan (Unopposed)

District 11

Democratic:

• Mikie Sherrill 77.5%
• Tamara Harris: 14.5%
• Mark Washburne: 3.4%
• Alison Heslin: 2.7%
• Mitchell Cobert: 1.9%

Republican:

• Jay Webber: 39.9%
• Peter De Neufville: 30.6%
• Antony Ghee: 21.8%
• Patrick Allocco: 2.1%
• Martin Hewitt: 3.5%

District 12

Democratic:

• Bonnie Watson Coleman (Unopposed, Incumbent)

Republican:

• Daryl Kipnis (Unopposed)