PRIMARIES

Maryland, former NAACP president Ben Jealous, who had the backing of the Bernie Sanders coalition, won the Democratic Party’s extremely competitive primary to challenge Republican Gov. Larry Hogan, beating a politician with the backing of the state’s entire Democratic establishment. In Syracuse, New York, liberal professor Dana Balter won the Democratic nomination to challenge GOP Rep. John

Katko despite national Democrats’ efforts to boost the other candidate, Perez Williams.

In Colorado, Democratic Rep. Jared Polis, a liberal member of Congress trying to be the first openly gay man to be governor in America, won the nomination for that state’s open governor’s race. And in New York, newcomer Adem Bunkeddeko came close to unseating veteran Democratic congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke.

• Trump: For the second time this month, Trump demonstrated he’s got sway over voters in South Carolina. In the state’s June 12 primary,

a tweet from the president helped end the career of GOP congressman Mark Sanford.

On Tuesday, Trump helped the state’s governor, Henry McMaster, win a runoff against businessman John Warren. McMaster has struggled to shake the label as a corrupt establishment politician and personally lobbied for Trump to hold a South Carolina rally for him the night before the election. As rambling and unfocused as Trump’s rally was, it might have helped McMaster win his runoff. GOP analysts predicted the runoff would be close; McMaster won by more than five points.

Trump was a clear winner across the country in Utah, too. There, Mitt Romney won the Republican nomination for an open Senate seat — which, in Utah, is often a bigger hurdle than the actual general election. But Romney got there only after minimizing his criticism of Trump. He went from warning his party that a Trump presidency would “greatly” diminish America’s future to writing an op-ed in the Salt Lake Tribune a few days ago that declared “the first year of (Trump’s) administration has exceeded my expectations.”

Trump tweeted: “Big and conclusive win by Mitt

Romney. Congratulations! I look forward to working together — there is so much good to do. A great and loving family will be coming to D.C.”

• Medical marijuana: Voters in Oklahoma approved legalizing medical marijuana, despite opposition from state Republicans and faith leaders. That could make Oklahoma the 30th state where medical marijuana is legal, though the ballot question could get sliced by Oklahoma’s Republican politicians if the governor calls a special legislative session to do that, as she has warned.