ARIZONA. John McCain defeated Kelli Ward and Clair Van Steenwyk: “McCain, R-Ariz., who is seeking a sixth, six-year Senate term, had been targeted for defeat by conservatives who deem him too liberal on issues such as immigration reform and gun control. But as he did in his 2010 GOP primary, McCain on Tuesday appeared to be outpacing his opponents on the right, leading Ward by a wide margin among early votes in the most-populous Maricopa County.”
FLORIDA. Former DNC chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz wins: “Wasserman Schultz dispatched a challenge from law professor Tim Canova who sought to capitalize on the controversies surrounding her tenure at the DNC and ride on the popularity of Sanders. With 81 percent of the vote counted, Wasserman Schultz had 57 percent to Canova’s 42 percent, the Associated Press reported. ”
FLORIDA. U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy fought off Alan Grayson: “In winning Tuesday, Murphy overcame a series of self-inflicted résumé gaffes uncovered by the Herald/Times. The revelations did little damage to Murphy in the primary because his chief opponent, Grayson, struggled under the scrutiny of an on-going Congressional ethics investigation into offshore hedge funds he managed while in office and allegations that emerged in July by his former wife that Grayson had physically abused her during their previous 25-year marriage.” He’ll face Marco Rubio in November.
FLORIDA. Marco Rubio defeated Carlos Beruff: “Beruff built his campaign around blasting Rubio for his poor attendance record while he was running for president and trying to plant seeds of doubt in Republican voters minds about whether Rubio would even serve out a new six-year-term or leave early to run for president again. Beruff also tried to align himself with Donald Trump, frequently mentioning the he, too, is a businessman running for office for the first time. But Trump never embraced Beruff, instead publicly endorsing Rubio during campaign stops in Florida.”
ARIZONA. Paul Babeu defeated four challengers to win the right to run for Congress: “Incumbent Ann Kirkpatrick is vacating the seat to run for U.S. Senate, and Democrat Tom O’Halleran easily won the Democratic primary Tuesday. ” FLASHBACK: “Babeu, a Republican, first ran for Congress in 2012 before pulling out of the race after news broke of his relationship with an undocumented male immigrant. That man alleged that Babeu threatened him with deportation if he divulged details of his relationship with Babeu. Babeu was not out at the time and had a staunch anti-immigration record, giving the story plenty of legs. A state investigation exonerated Babeu but the scandaldestroyed his congressional ambitions at the time.”
ARIZONA. Out candidate Matt Heinz defeats Martha McSally: “Former legislator Matt Heinz won the Democratic primary election in Arizona’s 2nd Congressional District Tuesday and will challenge incumbent Republican Martha McSally. With nearly half the votes counted, Heinz led Victoria Steele, another former legislator, 53 percent to 47 percent.”
