Welcome back to our next edition of the 2026 midterm primary elections! Tonight we have a runoff election in South Carolina where we get a rare Double Donald, yet another Kennedy attempting a political launch in New York, and, well … Maryland.
As always, we’re partnering with our friends at Decision Desk HQ to bring you live results as the votes get counted. Thanks to the magic of Not Having an Election In California, we may get results by the end of the night in all our races. Oh, wait … New York is almost as bad, so we may have to wait a few days for any close calls there, which may only involve the one interesting race in the Empire State. Jack Schlossberg, the grandson of John F. Kennedy, wants to extend the dynasty, or perhaps more like revive it:
It feels like just yesterday Jack Schlossberg was making shitposts dunking on his uncle, RFK Jr., and confounding anyone over the age of 35. These days, the grandson of former President John F. Kennedy has traded in his board shorts for a suit and tie, and speaks seriously about gun industry deregulation and tax policy. I guess it’s an inevitable evolution when running for Congress, but perhaps even more so when you’re competing in one of the most crowded primaries in the state. Schlossberg is one of eight candidates in the Democratic primary for New York’s 12th District, vying to replace retiring Rep. Jerry Nadler.
Democrats are bullish about this midterm cycle and that has contributed to an already growing trend of crowded primaries. The enthusiasm has translated into multiple candidates running in primaries not only in open, strongly Democratic seats like New York’s 12th, but also against incumbent Democrats, in competitive swing seats, and even in longer-shot Republican-held districts. The upside is that many voters have more choice than ever in deciding who ends up on the ballot, and who ultimately represents them. But there are potential downsides for the party as well: requiring candidates to spend money on the fight-before-the-fight, forcing incumbents to fend off challengers, and possibly even leading to weaker candidates in the general.
Nadler’s current seat is likely safe. This flood of candidates in Dem primaries may undermine their hopes of winning back a couple of NY seats held by Republicans, particularly in NY-17, where GOP incumbent Mike Lawler wants another term. Dems have five candidates, and it’s a headscratcher as to who will win.
New York polls close at 9 pm ET.
In South Carolina, the drama is more on the GOP side. The gubernatorial GOP runoff pits current Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette, who got endorsed by Donald Trump, against incumbent Attorney General Alan Wilson, who … also got endorsed by Donald Trump. No, that is not a typo:
The first year of South Carolina’s GOP race for governor was dominated by questions about which candidate President Donald Trump would endorse. Its final days were dominated by the president’s decision to endorse everyone.
On the Friday before the runoff, Trump reversed his May 29 “complete and total” endorsement of Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette and told voters they “can’t go wrong” picking Evette or her opponent, state Attorney General Alan Wilson.
The unusual co-endorsement provided a final twist in the first wide-open race for the GOP nomination for governor since 2010.
It provided a boost for Wilson’s campaign and a blow for Evette, who had exuded confidence since her endorsement and a first-place finish in the June 9 first round of voting.
What gives? Trump’s endorsement of Evette didn’t move the needle. In seven polls since the beginning of the month, Wilson leads all of them, and six of them by double digits. The most recent polls over the last week have Wilson at +18, +32, and +42, so an Evette win would be almost unthinkable. Prepare for a fast call in this race when polls close at 7 pm ET.
Maryland’s primaries won’t generate a ton of interest outside of the state. Elections are pretty uncompetitive in this deep-blue state, but if you want to track election results in those contests, the polls close at 9 pm ET.
If you’re stuck between the quick call in SC and the long wait in NY, the latest episode of The Ed Morrissey Show podcast is now up! Today’s show features:
- Which development is worse – the MOU with Iran or the Obama presidential library? Andrew Malcolm and I discuss both, and we agree that the ugly architecture in Chicago will be with us a lot longer than any deal with the IRGC.
- We also discuss another of Andrew’s popular “Memories” series, and talk about presidential libraries and why we don’t need them.
The Ed Morrissey Show is now a fully downloadable and streamable show at Spotify, Apple Podcasts, the TEMS Podcast YouTube channel, and on Rumble and our own in-house portal at the #TEMS page!
Editor’s Note: The 2026 Midterms will determine the fate of President Trump’s America First agenda. Republicans must maintain control of both chambers of Congress.
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