Ohio race close, recount possible
Despite the numbers, Trump declared victory in the extremely tight race
WESTERVILLE, Ohio — A special congressional election that tested President Donald Trump’s clout and cost both parties millions of dollars in battleground Ohio was too close to call early Wednesday. Trump claimed victory nevertheless.
The president took credit for Republican Troy Balderson’s performance, even though the contest could be headed to a mandatory recount.
The candidates were locked in a razor-thin race, which they will reprise in the general election in just three months. There were at least 3,367 provisional ballots left to be reviewed. That’s enough for Democrat Danny O’Connor to potentially force a recount.
The Associated Press does not declare winners in races subject to an automatic recount.
The Republican president’s shadow also loomed over primary contests in four other states, none bigger than Kansas, where Trump roiled the governor’s race by opposing the GOP incumbent on the eve of the election.
The day’s races pitted Trump’s fiery supporters against the Democratic Party’s anti-Trump resistance. The results are helping determine the political landscape — and Trump’s standing within his own party — just before the GOP defends its House and Senate majorities in November.
Voters in Kansas, Missouri, Michigan and Washington state joined those in Ohio in Tuesday’s voting.
Kansas Republicans were fighting among themselves in a battle for governor, where Secretary of State Kris Kobach was trying to unseat Gov. Jeff Colyer.
Should the polarizing Kobach win the primary, some Republican operatives fear he could lose the governor’s seat to Democrats this fall. The race could become further disrupted if Kansas City-area businessman Greg Orman makes it onto the November ballot. He submitted petitions Monday with more than 10,000 signatures for what could become the most serious independent run for Kansas governor in decades.
Trump made his preference clear for Kobach. “He is a fantastic guy who loves his State and our Country - he will be a GREAT Governor and has my full & total Endorsement! Strong on Crime, Border & Military,” the president tweeted on the eve of the election. “VOTE TUESDAY!”
Republicans were hoping for Democratic discord in Kansas’ 3rd Congressional District, where several candidates were fighting for the chance to take on Republican Rep. Kevin Yoder in November.
The five-way Democratic primary featured labor lawyer Brent Welder, who campaigned recently with Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and ascending political star, Alexandria OcasioCortez, a New York congressional candidate.
Also in the race: Native American attorney Sharice Davids and former school teacher Tom Niermann.