Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* It looks like none of the U.S. Senate candidates in Alaska will reach the 50% mark, which means the race is headed to a ranked choice runoff. The seat will remain in Republican hands, though it remains unclear whether incumbent Sen. Lisa Murkowski or GOP challenger Kelly Tshibaka will ultimately prevail.
* In addition to impressive Democratic gains in Michigan’s and Minnesota’s state legislatures, the Associated Press reported, “Democrats in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives are likely to make significant gains in the chamber, and some even see hope they could retake the majority once smoke clears from the Tuesday election they began with a 23-seat gap behind the Republicans.”
* On a related note, gerrymandering has made it impossible for Democrats to claim majorities in Wisconsin’s legislature, but Republicans hoped to secure a legislative supermajority in Madison this week, and the latest results suggest the party fell short of its goal.
* The GOP had great success taking over the state Supreme Courts in Ohio and North Carolina, but a related effort in Illinois appears to have failed.
* Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s margin of victory was smaller than other Republicans’, but the scandal-plagued incumbent was nevertheless re-elected this week, despite the criminal indictment and FBI investigation hanging over his head. * In New Hampshire’s U.S. Senate race, Don Bolduc fell far short, losing to incumbent Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan by nearly 10 points, though Donald Trump said the Republican would’ve won “easily” if only he’d been an even more enthusiastic election denier. * According to a Washington Post tally, Mehmet Oz ended up loaning his Republican U.S. Senate campaign more than $21 million. The first-time candidate ended up losing in Pennsylvania this week by roughly four percentage points. * And in Maryland, outgoing Republican Gov. Larry Hogan said this week’s election results make him more likely to launch a 2024 presidential campaign.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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