LEILA FADEL, HOST:
Results from another round of primary races are in, and those results are mixed.
MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
And that's making it somewhat difficult to gauge what voters want and don't want in the upcoming midterm elections.
FADEL: We've got Minnesota Public Radio's Clay Masters on the line with us for more on the results. Hi, Clay.
CLAY MASTERS, BYLINE: Hi there.
FADEL: OK, let's start with a closely-watched race in your neighboring state of Wisconsin that was home to a competitive Democratic primary for governor. What do we know?
MASTERS: Yeah. Milwaukee County executive David Crowley - who is considered a more moderate candidate - narrowly beat out a state representative, Francesca Hong, who identifies as a Democratic socialist. That's according to an AP race call. This race was closely watched, of course, to see if it would replicate the results of another swing state, nearby Michigan, where progressive Abdul El-Sayed recently won the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate there. While that didn't happen, this was a very close race and shows that there's a good amount of Democratic voters who are looking for a significant change in their party. He'll face GOP Congressman Tom Tiffany, a Trump-backed Republican in this swing state.
FADEL: In the Senate primary in Minnesota, where you are, Democrats backed the more progressive candidate. Tell us more about that race.
MASTERS: Yeah. That's the state's lieutenant governor, Peggy Flanagan. She won. The race between her and Congresswoman Angie Craig was really centered around President Trump's immigration crackdown this past winter here. That's what you heard a lot from in the ads. There was, you know, more than 3,000 federal agents that aimed at deporting undocumented immigrants that came to the state last winter, ultimately led to the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti. Flanagan regularly, really, went after Craig during the primary for a vote she made in Congress backing a GOP-backed immigration bill. Craig said she regretted that vote, and last night, Flanagan had this to say.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
PEGGY FLANAGAN: I know that we can fix our broken immigration system, secure the border and create a real pathway to citizenship that aligns with our values.
(SOUNDBITE OF CHEERING)
MASTERS: And noteworthy, Leila, Flanagan would be the first Native American woman to serve in the U.S. Senate should she win.
FADEL: And who will she be facing on the Republican side of this open U.S. Senate seat?
MASTERS: Republican Michele Tafoya, a former sportscaster who is not closely aligned with President Trump. Here's what she told me last night.
MICHELE TAFOYA: I am running to call balls and strikes to say, I think the president is right on this one. I think the president is wrong on this one. And I have the spine to stand up and say those things.
MASTERS: And being able to say, as a Republican, you are willing to disagree with the president is important when it comes to a place like Minnesota because the state has not gone for Trump in the last three presidential elections.
FADEL: What about the candidates that President Trump did back last night in competitive primaries? How did they do?
MASTERS: Here in Minnesota, Trump backed My Pillow founder Mike Lindell, and he'd lost the state GOP primary for governor to the state's speaker of the House, Lisa Demuth. She was largely seen as the establishment favorite with more money, despite not getting Trump's backing or even the endorsement of the state's Republican Party. Demuth will face Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar in the governor's race. Klobuchar quickly got in after current governor Tim Walz decided not to seek a third term. And also, I just should note, in South Carolina, Senator Darline Graham - who is serving out the remainder of her brother Lindsey Graham's term - did not secure enough votes to win Tuesday's primary outright. She was also endorsed by President Trump, and she's going to advance to a runoff later this month against Representative Ralph Norman.
FADEL: Clay Masters of Minnesota Public Radio. Thank you, Clay.
MASTERS: My pleasure. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
