Polls Close for Primary Elections in Missouri and Michigan

A well-funded Senate primary, a primary challenge targeting a ‘Squad’ member, and Joe Kent’s second chance—all are worth tracking on Aug. 6.

Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) addresses the media after holding a constituent community conversation at Oakland University in Rochester, Mich. on Dec. 16, 2019. Carlos Osorio/AP Photo

Election day polls closed in Missouri and Michigan at 8 p.m. ET on Aug. 6 for primary elections which feature several closely watched races.

From the Upper Midwest to the Pacific Northwest, it’s another primary day. While not every race on Aug. 6 will capture Americans’ attention, more than a few could have major ramifications.

In Michigan, Democrats and Republicans are stepping up to replace Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), who has held her seat for almost a quarter century. Other races in competitive districts will help drive events ahead of November’s general election when many eyes will be on the battleground state.

Voters across Missouri will cast their ballots in crucial statewide elections. Those in St. Louis will decide the fate of Rep. Cori Bush (D-Mo.), who risks a Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.)-style primary loss triggered by her criticism of Israel.

Washington State is host to many competitive races, including a few that test the power of an endorsement, or co-endorsement, from former President Donald Trump.

Here’s a rundown of the biggest Aug. 6 races by state.

Michigan

US Senate

Stabenow’s retirement announcement in January opened up another seat Republicans will contest as the party attempts to take the Senate this cycle. The race also adds to the attention Michigan will already get as a critical presidential battleground state.

Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) has a huge fundraising lead, with more than $24 million in receipts placing her ahead of any Democrat or Republican hopeful. The polling aggregator FiveThirtyEight shows the former CIA analyst has held a consistent lead over a likely GOP rival, former Rep. Mike Rogers.

In the Aug. 6 Democratic primary, Slotkin will face actor Hill Harper, who has raised over $2.8 million.

Another hopeful, Nasser Beydoun, was disqualified from appearing on the ballot. His challenge to that decision was shot down by the Michigan Court of Appeals in June.

The Republican field is a little more crowded.

Rep. Justin Amash (R-Mich.) listens to a debate on Capitol Hill in Washington on June 12, 2019. J. Scott Applewhite/AP Photo

Rogers, who has raised more than $5.3 million to date, will compete against physician Sherry O’Donnell and another former congressman, Justin Amash. Elected as a Republican, Amash briefly served as a Libertarian after changing parties in 2020. Sandy Pensler, another candidate, dropped out in late July and threw his support behind Rogers.

8th District

In central Michigan, the state’s Eighth District is rated a “Democrat toss-up” by the Cook Political Report and Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball. Its current representative, Rep. Dan Kildee (R-Mich.), is not seeking reelection.

The Democratic primary for territory that includes Saginaw, Bay City, and Flint will feature Matt Collier, the former mayor of Flint, Michigan; Pamela Pugh, the president of the Michigan Board of Education; and state Sen. Kristen McDonald Rivet.

On the Republican side, retired Dow Chemical executive Mary Draves will compete against truck driver Anthony Hudson and Paul Junge, a past hopeful in the district who served in the Trump administration.

7th District

The district that Slotkin is vacating is also competitive between the two parties. It is rated a “toss-up” by Sabato and a “Democrat toss-up” by Cook.

Ranging from territory west of Lansing to the outer suburbs of Detroit, the district will feature uncontested primaries on both sides. Republicans will be able to vote for Tom Barrett, a former state senator. Democrats will be able to vote for Curtis Hertel, also a previous member of the Michigan Senate. Federal campaign finance data shows that, so far, the financial advantage belongs to Hertel.

3rd District

Freshman Rep. Hillary Scholten (D-Mich.) is defending her seat in a primary in the 3rd, rated “likely Democrat” by Cook. Entrepreneur Salim Al-Shatel is challenging her in that contest.

The Republican primary in the 3rd District, a chunk of western Michigan that includes Grand Rapids and Grand Haven, is also a two-person race. Lawyer Paul Hudson is running against entrepreneur Michael Markey Jr.

10th District

The district, which is made up of suburban territory north of Detroit, is also helmed by a freshman, Rep. John James (R-Mich.).  He’s running unopposed in his party’s primary. Cook labels the district “lean Republican” this cycle.

Rep. John James (R-Mich.) speaks at the 2024 Republican National Convention (RNC) in Milwaukee, Wis., on July 15, 2024. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

Four Democrats—Carl Marlinga, Emily Busch, Tiffany Tilley, and Diane Young—are competing in that primary. Marlinga, a retired judge, lost to James in the 2022 general election. Busch is a gun safety advocate. Tilley serves on the Michigan Board of Education. Young is a financial planner.

Missouri

1st District

While much of the Show Me State leans Republican, in St. Louis, the 1st Congressional District will judge whether Bush will serve a third term in the House. The district’s heavily Democratic skew means the primary winner is virtually guaranteed an easy win in the general.

Bush, who unseated longtime Democrat congressman Lacy Clay in the largely black and urban district covering most of St. Louis and its northern suburbs in 2020, is facing a stiff primary challenge from Wesley Bell, the prosecuting attorney for St. Louis County.

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) is dumping millions into anti-Bush and pro-Bell advertising and get-out-the-vote efforts in St. Louis. According to its latest federal campaign finance reports, AIPAC-linked super political action committee United Democracy Project had spent about $8.6 million to knock out Bush as of Aug. 2.

(L-R) U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Ca.), Rep. Cori Bush (D-Mo.) and Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) participate in a news conference at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC, on Dec. 8, 2021. Alex Wong/Getty Images

If Bell prevails, Bush will be the second member of the so-called “Squad” of left-wing Democrats to lose an intraparty primary contest this election cycle.

Statewide Races

Republicans and Democrats are positioning themselves to run for five of the six positions in Missouri’s executive branch up for grabs in the fall. No Democrat has held a statewide office since Nicole Galloway was elected state auditor in 2018. She left office in 2023.

The biggest race of the night is the three-way contest to replace outgoing Gov. Mike Parson. Three other Republicans—Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe, Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, and state Sen. Bill Eigel—are running a close race with no clear favorite.

Missouri will also winnow the field for the positions of Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, State Treasurer, and Attorney General. The only incumbents are Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey and Missouri State Treasurer Vivek Malek.

The down-ballot race attracting the most national attention is the intra-Republican contest between incumbent Bailey and his lone challenger, Will Scharf.

Scharf, who worked on the legal team for former President Donald Trump, is backed by conservative activist Leonard Leo, wealthy GOP megadonor Paul Singer and the influential Club for Growth. Bailey, who was appointed by Parson and looking for his first full term as the state’s top law enforcement official, is backed by local power players, including Missouri megadonor Rex Sinquefield.

Missouri state Attorney General Andrew Bailey speaks at the Pray Vote Stand Summit in Washington on Sept. 16, 2023, in a still from a video. Courtesy of Pray Vote Stand Summit/Screenshot via The Epoch Times

Washington

While Michigan and Missouri have partisan primaries, in Washington, all candidates, regardless of party, will be on the same ballot. The top two finishers, regardless of party, will advance to the general election on Nov. 5.

3rd District

First-term Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-Wash.) is running for reelection in a Republican-leaning district in the state’s southwest. Cook rates the district a “Democrat toss-up.”

Gluesenkamp Perez succeeded former Rep. Jamie Herrera Beutler (R-Wash.), a six-term member who voted for the second impeachment of then-President Trump in 2021. Beutler was subsequently denounced by Trump and defeated in the 2022 primary by former U.S. Army officer Joe Kent—the widower of an American soldier who was killed in Syria. Kent, who was endorsed by Trump, lost to Gluesenkamp Perez by 0.8 percent in 2022.

Kent is running again, and with Trump’s backing. Leslie Lewallen, a Camas City Councillor, is also running as a Republican. John Saulie-Rohman is running as an independent.

Republican congressional candidate Joe Kent speaks at a campaign event in Morton, Wash., on Oct. 5, 2022. Nathan Howard/Getty Images

As a vulnerable House Democrat with no Democratic challengers, Gluesenkamp Perez has gained more than $6.7 million in campaign contributions, over five times Kent’s fundraising of $1.3 million.

4th District

Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-Wash.), a five-term incumbent, is running for reelection in a heavily Republican seat. Yet, he is facing a primary challenge from Republican candidates Jerrold Sessler and Tiffany Smiley. Both were co-endorsed by Trump, part of a trend in split endorsements by the party’s presidential nominee. Like Beutler, Newhouse voted in favor of the second impeachment of Trump in 2021, following the events of Jan. 6, 2021, at the U.S. Capitol building.

In 2022, no Trump-endorsed candidate advanced from the primary to the general election. Newhouse won the latter with 66.5 percent of the vote.

While he currently leads in fundraising, polling from Smiley’s campaign showed her leading Newhouse by 9 percentage points.

5th District

Washington’s Fifth District has an open primary after 10-term Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.)—a former House Republican Conference chair who leads the powerful Energy and Commerce Committee—announced in February that she would not seek reelection. The seat, which covers eastern Washington, leans solidly Republican, according to Cook.

Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) sponsored one of four bills calling for an end to COVID-19 emergency measures that were adopted by the House Rules Committee on Jan. 30, 2023. Samuel Corum/Getty Images

Polling on the race has not been published, though Republican candidate and Spokane County Treasurer Michael Baumgartner is ahead in fundraising with $790,000 in receipts. Baumgartner is a former state senator and, in 2012, lost to U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) as the Republican nominee for Senate.

Other notable Republicans running are state Rep. Jacquelin Maycumber and former state Sen. Brian Dansel.

Sixth District

Six-term Rep. Derek Kilmer (D-Wash.) is retiring, creating an open primary. The race has attracted prominent Democratic challengers—the state’s Public Lands Commissioner Hilary Franz and state Sen. Emily Randall.

While the district has elected Democrats since 1965, one Republican challenger, state Sen. Drew MacEwen, previously flipped a Democratic-held seat to enter the state Senate in 2022. Non-profit founder Janis Clark is another Republican contending for the seat.

Franz and Randall have raised over $1 million each, while MacEwen has raised over $153,000. The district leans Democratic by six points according to Cook, meaning that—if MacEwen makes it to the second round—the sole Democratic candidate is favored to win the general election. Should Franz and Randall advance, however, it would set up a Democrat v. Democrat election campaign.