It’s not unusual to hear American voters complain about the length of the campaign season, and by any fair measure, they have a point. After all, this year, the first round of primaries began more than six months ago.
But for those eager to move on, there’s good news: For all intents and purposes, tomorrow is the last day for 2022 primaries. There are several competitive contests across three states, so let’s take a look at them in alphabetical order:
In Delaware, there’s a Republican U.S. House primary, though much of the party has rallied behind Lee Murphy. If he prevails, locals will see a rematch of the 2020 race, in which incumbent Democratic Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester defeated Murphy by 17 points.
Perhaps the most notable Democratic primary in Delaware is the state auditor’s race: Incumbent Kathleen McGuiness recently was found guilty of official misconduct, but she’s running for re-election anyway. The state party has endorsed her primary rival, accountant Lydia York.
In New Hampshire, the Republican primary for the U.S. Senate is arguably tomorrow’s marquee contest. Polls suggest that retired far-right Army Brig. Gen. Don Bolduc is the front-runner, though many GOP officials who see him as unelectable have rallied behind state Sen. Chuck Morse. For his part, Donald Trump hasn’t yet issued an endorsement, though he did recently say, “[Bolduc] said some great things, strong guy, tough guy. I think he’s doing very well, too. I hear he’s up, he’s up quite a bit.”
Meanwhile, there are primaries in both of the Granite State’s congressional districts tomorrow. In New Hampshire’s 1st District, two former Trump administration officials — Karoline Leavitt and Matt Mowers — are vying for the GOP nod, and Republican leaders are divided amongst themselves in their endorsements.
As for the GOP primary in New Hampshire’s 2nd District, much of the party has rallied behind Keene Mayor George Hansel, but he’s facing off against Robert Burns, a far-right former county official who has received some financial support from Democrats who see him as unelectable in a general election.
It’s probably worth mentioning that Gov. Chris Sununu also faces several Republican primary rivals tomorrow, though the Republican incumbent is a very safe bet. And in Rhode Island, the most notable contest is clearly the Democrats’ gubernatorial primary. Incumbent Dan McKee was elevated to the post early last year when Gov. Gina Raimondo joined the Biden administration, but when McKee found himself under investigation, several primary rivals started lining up. There hasn’t been a lot of polling, though Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea appears to be one of the governor’s top competitors. Also keep an eye on Rhode Island’s 2nd Congressional District, where Rep. James Langevin, the Democratic incumbent, is retiring. On the Republican side, the party has already rallied behind Cranston Mayor Allan Fung, while on the Democratic side, there’s a crowded primary field. State Treasurer Seth Magaziner appears to be the front-runner. * Postscript: Technically, the final primary of 2022 is in Louisiana on Election Day, but that’s because of the state’s unique jungle primary system. It’s why I said tomorrow is the last day for 2022 primaries for all intents and purposes.
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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