Texas, Kentucky and Arkansas also vote ahead of the midterms
ATLANTA — It was shaping up as a big night for women Tuesday as four states cast primary and runoff ballots, with Georgia Democrats taking the lead by positioning Stacey Abrams to become the first black female governor in American history.
Voters also picked nominees in Kentucky, Arkansas and Texas. A closer look at key story lines:
Texas congressional runoffs
Texas had three House runoffs that will be key to whether Democrats can flip the minimum 24 GOP-held seats they’ll need for a majority when a new Congress convenes next year. All three were among 25 nationally where Trump ran behind Hillary Clinton in 2016.
In a San Antonio-Mexican border district, Gina Ortiz Jones, an Air Force veteran and former intelligence officer, got Democrats’ nod to face Republican Will Hurd in November. Jones would the first openly lesbian congresswoman from her state.
Former NFL player Colin Allred won a battle of two attorneys and former Obama administration official in a runoff for the Democratic nomination in a metro-Dallas district. He topped Lillian Salerno and will face Republican Rep. Pete Sessions in November.
Early returns in a metroHouston matchup showed attorney Lizzie Fletcher leading activist Laura Moser in what became a proxy for Democrats’ fight between liberals and moderates. The winner will face vulnerable Republican Rep. John Culberson.
Republicans were watching a tight primary runoff testing the endorsement power of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, who backed his former chief of staff, Chip Roy, for a San Antonio-area congressional seat opened by the retirement of Rep. Lamar Smith.
In the governor’s race, Democrats tapped former Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez to take on Republican incumbent Greg Abbott in November. Valdez is Texas’ first openly gay and first Latina nominee for governor.
Democrats battle in Kentucky
Voters in a central Kentucky congressional district opted for retired Marine officer and fighter pilot Amy McGrath over Lexington Mayor Jim Gray to advance to a fall campaign against Republican Rep. Andy Barr.
National Democrats once touted Gray as one of their best recruits in their efforts for a House majority. They said in recent weeks they’d be happy with McGrath, but the race still shaped up as a battle between rank-and-file activists and party establishment.
McGrath was making her first bid for public office, among a handful of female Naval Academy graduates running for Congress this year.
In eastern Kentucky’s Rowan County, voters denied the Democratic nomination to David Ermold, a gay candidate who wanted to challenge the local clerk who denied him and others same-sex marriage licenses.
Arkansas’ health care preview
While Washington fixates on the daily developments in the Russia election meddling investigation, Democratic congressional candidates insist they’ll win in November arguing about bread-andbutter issues like health care.
Arkansas state Rep. Clarke Tucker captured Democrats’ congressional nomination in a Little Rock-based district by telling his story as a cancer survivor. Though he faced a crowded primary field, his real target all along has been Republican Rep. French Hill, who voted many times to repeal the 2010 Affordable Care Act.
The Arkansas district may not be at the top of Democrats’ national target list, but it’s the kind of district the party might have to win to be assured of regaining House control.
Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson dispatched his primary opposition.