Tim Michels, the Trump-backed candidate for governor of Wisconsin, defeated the state’s former Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch in a proxy contest that pitted the ex-president against his former Vice President Mike Pence.
The race was called for Michels around 11:35 p.m. EDT, after he had been racing many points ahead of Kleefisch for the most of the night. In the last week before the election, the two Republicans were neck and neck in the polls, with both Trump and Pence flying to Wisconsin to push for their favorite candidate.
On Friday, Trump told a rally audience that Kleefisch, who was backed by Pence and former Republican Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin, was a “handpicked candidate of the failed establishment, the RINOs, the Washington swamp.”
‘Rebecca Kleefisch does not have what it takes to defeat Tony Evers,’ Trump remarked, referring to the state’s Democratic incumbent governor. ‘He’ll win if he runs against Rebecca.’
Both Republican candidates questioned the 2020 election results, but none went as far as a third contender, Timothy Ramthun, who stated he intended to decertify the results, which is illegal.
Michels, a construction mogul, was nevertheless MAGA-approved.
According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Kleefisch surrendered to Michels during an event in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin.
‘I have given this contest to Tim Michels, and I encourage you all to keep fighting,’ she added. ‘The struggle is now fully against Tony Evers and the leftists who want to take away our way of life,’ says the president.
Overall, voters in four states – Vermont, Connecticut, Wisconsin, and Minnesota – went to the polls Tuesday for the second round of primary elections. On the Democratic side, Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes handily won the party’s Senate primary in Wisconsin.
Barnes will face incumbent Republican Sen. Ron Johnson, who is bracing for a difficult re-election campaign in a state that supported President Joe Biden in the previous election but Trump four years ago.
Barnes, a progressive endorsed by Democrats like as Sen. Elizabeth Warren, will need to rally moderates and independents to defeat Johnson, a Trump-aligned conservative.
In Minnesota,’squad’ member Rep. Ilhan Omar lost a close primary to more moderate Democratic candidate Don Samuels.
The incumbent, Omar, was just a few points ahead when the results came in late Tuesday night.
The Associated Press declared the race in her favor at 11:47 p.m. EDT.
Omar, a member of the progressive Squad, won the Democratic primary against a centrist candidate who questioned the incumbent’s backing for the ‘defund the cops’ campaign.
Omar, who represents Minneapolis in Congress and is a strong voice on the left, has championed demands to transfer more public safety spending towards community-based initiatives.
She clashed with former Minneapolis City Councilmember Don Samuels, whose district in north Minneapolis had a higher rate of violent crime than the rest of the city.
On the Democratic side, Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes handily won the party’s Senate primary in Wisconsin.
Barnes will face incumbent Republican Sen. Ron Johnson, who is bracing for a difficult re-election campaign in a state that supported President Joe Biden in the previous election but Trump four years ago.
Barnes, a progressive endorsed by Democrats like as Sen. Elizabeth Warren, will need to rally moderates and independents to defeat Johnson, a Trump-aligned conservative.
In Minnesota,’squad’ member Rep. Ilhan Omar lost a close primary to more moderate Democratic candidate Don Samuels.
The incumbent, Omar, was just a few points ahead when the results came in late Tuesday night.
The Associated Press declared the race in her favor at 11:47 p.m. EDT.
Omar, a member of the progressive Squad, won the Democratic primary against a centrist candidate who questioned the incumbent’s backing for the ‘defund the cops’ campaign.
Omar, who represents Minneapolis in Congress and is a strong voice on the left, has championed demands to transfer more public safety spending towards community-based initiatives.
She clashed with former Minneapolis City Councilmember Don Samuels, whose district in north Minneapolis had a higher rate of violent crime than the rest of the city.
Barb Atkinson, a 53-year-old part-time event manager for a radio station who backed Samuels, described Omar as “too far to the left.”
‘While I admire Ilhan Omar and all she has accomplished, I disagree with her decision to defund the police. ‘I truly believe that phrase conveys the incorrect impression,’ said Atkinson. ‘We need our leaders to work together to tackle this problem,’ she continued.
Omar, who is running for a third term in the House, defeated a similar primary battle from a well-funded but lesser-known opponent two years ago.
‘She’s already faced a lot of criticism and resistance. ‘I don’t believe her job is done,’ said Kathy Ward, a 62-year-old Minneapolis apartment building property manager who voted for Omar. ‘We have to give her a chance.’ Barb Atkinson, a 53-year-old part-time event manager for a radio station who backed Samuels, described Omar as “too far to the left.”
‘While I admire Ilhan Omar and all she has accomplished, I disagree with her decision to defund the police. ‘I truly believe that phrase conveys the incorrect impression,’ said Atkinson. ‘We need our leaders to work together to tackle this problem,’ she continued.
Omar, who is running for a third term in the House, defeated a similar primary battle from a well-funded but lesser-known opponent two years ago.
‘She’s already faced a lot of criticism and resistance. ‘I don’t believe her job is done,’ said Kathy Ward, a 62-year-old Minneapolis apartment building property manager who voted for Omar. ‘We have to give her a chance.’ The races in New England on Tuesday are less spectacular.
Rep. Peter Welch of Vermont easily won the Democratic primary to replace retiring Sen. Patrick Leahy.
Furthermore, the state’s incumbent governor, Republican Phil Scott, easily won his primary. Democrat Brenda Siegel’s gubernatorial primary was unopposed, while Scott is widely projected to win a fourth term. State Senator Becca Balint beat Lt. Gov. Molly Gray in the Democratic primary for the state’s at-large House seat, which Welch is leaving to run for Senate.
If Balint is elected to Congress in November, she will be the first woman and the first openly lesbian person to do so.
Vermont is the country’s latest state to add a female member to its congressional delegation. Balint, who is already the frontrunner in the general election in November, would be Vermont’s first openly homosexual member of Congress.
Some of the nation’s leading left-wing leaders, including Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, and Rep. Pramila Jayapal, head of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, have backed her.
Vermont has selected a strong, progressive future vision, and I will be pleased to serve us in Congress,’ Balint said in a statement.
Balint is competing for the state’s lone House seat, which will be left by Rep. Peter Welch, who is running for Senate and won the Democratic nomination comfortably on Tuesday. Welch is attempting to replace Sen. Patrick Leahy, the Senate’s longest-serving member, who is retiring, leaving Vermont with its first vacant Senate seat since 2006, when Sanders replaced Jim Jeffords.
Balint defeated Lt. Gov. Molly Gray, an ex-Welch staffer, and has the support of Leahy and former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean. In November, she will face Marine Corps veteran Liam Madden of Bellows Falls, who won the Republican nomination.