What you need to know ahead of Tuesday's primaries in Maryland, Nebraska and West Virginia

Voters head to the polls Tuesday in four states for primaries that will set up key Senate races and settle other intraparty battles. That includes campaigns that featured the Jan. 6 Capitol rioters and those that featured police officers who fought rioters that day.

Primary elections are being held in Maryland, West Virginia, and Nebraska, and runoff elections are being held in North Carolina for candidates who did not receive a majority of votes in the March primary.

Former President Donald Trump's support is at stake in West Virginia, where he led the race to succeed retiring Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin. And Trump has secured support in North Carolina twice. In the state, the only candidates remaining in the state's two primary runoffs after their opponents have finished their campaigns are two of his preferred House candidates, lobbyist Addison McDowell and attorney Brad. Only Mr. Nott.

Meanwhile, several Republicans are trying to fend off primary challengers from the right, and a handful of open seats in Maryland could also help shape the Democratic caucus next year.

Voting deadlines are 7:30 p.m. ET in West Virginia and North Carolina, 8 p.m. ET in Maryland, and 9 p.m. ET in Nebraska. There are four things to keep in mind:

Senate race combination

Republicans aim to flip the Senate this year, eyeing potential gains in typically blue Maryland and red West Virginia.

Manchin's retirement makes West Virginia, a state Trump won by 39 points in 2020, a much easier target for Republicans. The Republican primary remains close, and President Trump's influence over primary voters will be tested.

Trump endorsed Republican Gov. Jim Justice early in the campaign, as did the National Republican Senatorial Committee. But Rep. Alex Mooney isn't giving up, and he's getting a big boost on the airwaves from the conservative Club for Growth Action's political action committee.

Mooney and Club for Growth I tried to portray justice Justice has touted his work as governor as a liberal who raised taxes. The Justice Department also emphasized President Trump's support. each of his television ads.

There are three candidates in the race for the Democratic nomination: Wheeling Mayor Glenn Elliott, Marine Corps veteran and organizer Zachary Shrewsbury, and former coal baron Don Blankenship. He ran as a Republican candidate for the Senate, but was unsuccessful. 2018. spent a year in prison for violating mine safety regulations in an explosion at one of his company's mines.

Maryland's Senate matchup is also set to be decided on Tuesday, a race that could be crucial to seizing control of the Senate if former Gov. Larry Hogan wins the Republican primary. Republicans praised Hogan, a two-time statewide candidate in a traditionally Democratic state, as a top recruit, and he quickly received support from the NRSC.

Hogan, a vocal critic of Trump, is competing in the primary against perennial candidate Robin Ficker, who is self-financing his campaign. Ficker ran for office multiple times and failed, but outperformed Hogan on the air. Start advertising “I support President Trump,” Ficker said.

NRSC partners with Hogan in advertising to launch spot focused on immigrationthe top issue for Republican primary voters.

Hogan's candidacy has shaken up the Democratic primary race between U.S. Rep. David Tron and Prince George's County Executive Angela Alsobrooks, both of whom maintain they can retain their seats in November. There is.

Mr. Tron has some support from prominent members of Congress and the state's teachers union, and he is filling the airwaves with ads. He leveraged his personal wealth as founder of the Total Wine and More retail chain to loan his campaign more than $60 million.

Allbrooks, the state's first Black female senator, has received support from Gov. Wes Moore, Sen. Chris Van Hollen and other members of the Congressional delegation.she got Broadcast late boost From EMILY's List, an organization that supports female candidates who support abortion rights.

The Senate matchup will also take place in deep-red Nebraska. Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts is running to serve out the final two years of former Sen. Ben Sasse's term, who was appointed to the Senate last year. The only Democrat vying to run against him is Preston Love Jr., an adjunct professor at the University of Nebraska at Omaha.

Democrats did not field a candidate to challenge Republican Sen. Deb Fischer, who is seeking a third term. She is therefore expected to face independent Labor leader Dan Osborne in November.

House Republicans face challenger from the right

Several House Republicans are facing primary challengers from the right. Nebraska Rep. Don Bacon, one of 17 Republicans representing districts won by Joe Biden in 2020, is running against businessman Dan Frye in the Omaha-based 2nd District. Compete against Mr.

Mr. Frye has the support of the state Republican Party. did not support members of the state's congressional delegation Instead, it supported the three main challengers.Bacon and Ricketts-funded Alliance super PAC far outpaces Frye in the race, with Bacon expressed confidence He will win on Tuesday.

If Bacon wins the primary, he will face a rematch with Democratic state Sen. Tony Vargas, who lost to Bacon by three points in 2022. Democrats are optimistic about defeating Mr. Bacon in a presidential election year, with abortion expected to be a top issue for the party.voters (and Bacon touts support from anti-abortion rights groups in his primary).

In West Virginia's 1st Congressional District, Miller will face former state Democrat Derrick Evans in the Republican primary.

Evans is Convicted of felony assault on Capitol Hill He touted his actions on January 6 in a television ad, saying he “stands with President Trump to peacefully and patriotically protest a stolen election” and calling himself “a political figure.” '' and claimed to have been held as a “hostage.'' Prisoner. ” (Evans Pleaded guilty to a felony charge of insurrection. (Scheduled for March 2022)

Miller, who beat Evans on the airwaves, said: His past candidacy as a Democrat.Mirrors have also been released Trump ad praising him, Even if President Trump doesn't endorse it in the primaries.

Former Capitol Police Officer Harry Dunn is running for Congress

Tuesday's primary also includes a familiar face to those who watched testimony during the House investigation into the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol: a former Capitol Police officer. harry dunis running for Maryland's open 3rd Congressional District.

The seat is being vacated by retiring Democratic Rep. Paul Sarbanes, and its location in a Democratic-leaning area means the winner of November's primary will be the favorite. According to AdImpact, Dunn was the top fundraiser in the race by several million dollars and was able to spend more than $2 million on ads (including highlight ads). His actions on January 6th.

The United Democracy Project, a super PAC affiliated with the pro-Israel Israel Public Affairs Committee, spent more than $3.5 million backing state Sen. Sarah Elfreth. This group's ads are not about issues related to Israel; abortion and health care. Dunn's campaign has tried to fight back by emphasizing how UDP works. Partially dependent on Republican donors (UDP responds to this attack with its own spotlight, and Dan writes,ashamed of myself”).

Maryland's 6th District also has a competitive primary race to replace Trone in the House of Representatives. Among the Democrats are April McClain Delaney (former Assistant Secretary of Commerce and wife of former Congressman John Delaney), state Democratic Party Joe Vogel, Hagerstown Mayor Tekesha Martinez, and Montgomery County Councilmember Tekesha Martinez. There's Laurie Ann Sayles. And in the Republican primary, 2022 Republican gubernatorial candidate Dan Cox and former state Democratic Party member Neil Parrott are the frontrunners.

The retirement of Democratic Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger leaves another Democratic-leaning seat open. Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski and state Rep. Harry Bandari are the top candidates in that race, while Republican candidates include pro-Trump radio personality and supporter Kimberly・Contains Mr. Classic. Who is the 2020 Republican candidate for another Maryland congressional district?

Brutal West Virginia gubernatorial primary

The competition to replace the judge is fierce and brutal, featuring powerful politicians and scions of the state's prominent political families.

There doesn't seem to be a clear favorite horse in the crowded field. The candidates include two statewide officeholders, Attorney General Patrick Morrisey and Secretary of State Mac Warner, and the two children of a West Virginia Republican, the son of Sen. Shelley Moore Capito. They include former state Rep. Moore Capito and businessman Chris Miller. Son of Congressman Carol Miller. (For Riley Moore, nephew of a senator and cousin of a former state representative, Tuesday's election is a family affair. is also running for an open seat.. )

This led to more than $33 million in advertising spending by candidates and outside groups. Judiciary officials are also considering supporting Mr. Capito, but Mr. Trump has not chosen a candidate.

The advertising wars are getting particularly bad. Groups supporting Morrissey have published a series of ads disparaging transgender people. blame mirror and moore Be an ally to the LGBTQ community.Organizations supporting Mr. Miller Comparing Morrissey to a pig before continuing to make similar anti-transgender claims against Morrissey.And groups supporting Capito exploded. Morrissey lobbying And he claimed that “big pharmaceutical companies profited when they sold poisonous drugs.”

But the silver lining for Republicans is that whoever emerges from a crowded primary will have a huge advantage over anyone. Huntington Mayor Steve Williamsthe only Democrat in the race.