Tuesday primaries solidify choices
WASHINGTON — Voting in the races for the Democratic and Republican presidential nominations happens again Tuesday, a week after President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump secured enough delegate support to become their parties’ presumptive nominees. Three states also will hold primaries for other offices as this November’s battle for control of the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House comes into sharper focus.
Biden and Trump will appear on primary ballots in four states:
Arizona, Illinois, Kansas and Ohio. Trump also will appear on the ballot in Florida, which canceled its Democratic primary. Neither candidate faces strong challenges, although “None of the Names Shown” will be a ballot option for both primaries in Kansas.
Further down the ballot, California and Ohio will hold special primaries to fill vacancies in the narrowly divided House. In California’s 20th District, nine candidates are competing to replace former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who resigned in December following his ouster
from the speakership by members of his own party. All candidates run on the same ballot regardless of party, and, if no one receives a majority of the vote on Tuesday, the top two finishers will advance to a May special general election. The winner will serve out the rest of McCarthy’s term. A separate primary was held on March 5 for the full term that begins in January 2025. Republicans Vince Fong, a state Assemblyman, and Mike Boudreaux, the Tulare County sheriff, advanced to the November ballot. They are also competing in Tuesday’s special primary.
In Ohio’s 6th Congressional District, voters will choose the nominees to replace former Republican U.S. Rep. Bill Johnson, who resigned in January to become the president of Youngstown State
University. Three Republicans and two Democrats are competing in both a special election to fill the remainder of Johnson’s term as well as the regularly scheduled primary for the full term. The winner of the special election will advance to a special general election on June 11.
Ohio Republicans will also decide a competitive U.S. Senate primary featuring state Sen. Matt Dolan, Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose and businessman Bernie Moreno, who has Trump’s backing. Dolan has the endorsement of Gov. Mike DeWine and
former Sen. Rob Portman and was the only candidate in his primary who didn’t actively court Trump’s endorsement. The winner will face Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown in one of the key races for control of the chamber this fall.
Illinois will also hold state primaries Tuesday besides the presidential contests. Three incumbent members of Congress face competitive challenges from within their parties. In the 4th Congressional District, Democratic Rep. Chuy García faces Alderman Raymond Lopez. In the 7th District, Rep. Danny Davis is part of a crowded field that includes Chicago City Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin, community organizer Kina Collins and two others. In the 12th District, Republican Rep. Mike Bost has a challenge from former state Sen. Darren Bailey.
DECISION NOTES
In the presidential race, Biden and Trump are the favorites in their primaries as neither faces strong challenges. The first indications that they are winning statewide on a level consistent with the overwhelming margins seen in most other contests held this year may be sufficient to determine the statewide winners.
In the California special congressional election, the results of the March 5 primary for the full-term seat provide a useful point of comparison, since both races included the same major candidates. Fong was the top finisher on March 5, with Boudreaux a distant second and Democrat Marisa Wood close behind in third place. A candidate can win the seat on Tuesday by receiving more than 50% of the vote. Otherwise, the top two finishers will advance to a special general election in May. This could delay determining who won the race. If the leading candidate hovers near the 50% mark, the race might not be called until additional votes are counted, even if the front-runner leads the rest of the field by a significant margin. The Associated Press will either declare a winner if a candidate has clearly received more than 50% of the vote or declare that no candidate has received a majority and identify which two candidates will advance to the May special election.
Here are the March 19 contests at a glance:
DELEGATES AT STAKE ON MARCH 19
Democrats: 379 Republicans: 350
STATES WITH PRESIDENTIAL CONTESTS (5)
Arizona, Florida (Republican only), Illinois, Kansas, Ohio
DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CONTESTS (4)
STATE-RUN PRIMARIES (4): Arizona, Illinois, Kansas, Ohio
REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CONTESTS (5)
STATE-RUN PRIMARIES (5): Arizona, Florida (Republican only), Illinois, Kansas, Ohio
STATES WITH PRIMARIES FOR STATE & LOCAL OFFICES (3)
California, Illinois, Ohio
TUESDAY TIMELINE
4 p.m. PDT: Most polls close in Florida
4:30 p.m. PDT: All polls close in Ohio
5 p.m. PDT: All polls close in Illinois; last polls close in Florida; most polls close in Kansas
6 p.m. PDT: Last polls close in Kansas; first polls close in Arizona
7 p.m. PDT: Most polls close in Arizona
8 p.m. PDT: All polls close in California
CALIFORNIA
U.S. HOUSE DISTRICT 20 SPECIAL PRIMARY: Republicans Mike Boudreaux, Anna Zoë Cohen, Vince Fong and Kyle Kirkland. Democrats Harmesh Kumar and Marisa Wood. No Party Preference: James Cardoza, Ben Dewell, David Fluhart. All candidates are listed together on the same ballot regardless of party.
If no candidate receives a vote majority, the top two vote-getters advance to a special general election on May 21.