Key takeaways from Tuesday night's primaries
Tuesday night's primaries in Virginia, South Carolina, Maine, Nevada and North Carolina continued some key trends in the 2018 midterm election cycle.
It was generally a good night for some of the Republicans who stick with President Trump — and not so good for some of the others who have criticized him in the past. It was also a good night for women running on campaigns opposed to Mr. Trump, in a cycle that has more female candidates than ever before.
Here are some key takeaways, and races, to remember as the election cycle continues apace.
"We are the party of Donald J. Trump"
In South Carolina, House Freedom Caucus member Rep. Mark Sanford, who has criticized Mr. Trump in the past, lost his primary to a vocal Trump supporter, hours after Mr. Trump blasted him on Twitter as "very unhelpful" and alluded to Sanford's past affair in Argentina. State Rep. Katie Arrington, who defeated Sanford, made it clear where she stands after declaring victory: "We are the party of President Donald J. Trump," she said.
Mark Sanford has been very unhelpful to me in my campaign to MAGA. He is MIA and nothing but trouble. He is better off in Argentina. I fully endorse Katie Arrington for Congress in SC, a state I love. She is tough on crime and will continue our fight to lower taxes. VOTE Katie!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 12, 2018
Arrington's victory over a sitting congressman, only the second of the midterm cycle so far, made it clear — generally speaking, Republicans who don't stand with Trump, can't win.
Loyalty to Mr. Trump also seemed to work in favor of the controversial Corey Stewart, who built his brand promoting Confederate statues and symbols. Stewart won the GOP nomination for U.S. Senate to run against sitting Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine in November.
Corey Stewart predicted on Sirius XM's Breitbart News Daily this morning that those who oppose Mr. Trump will "go the way of the dodo."
"The rising part of the Republican Party is the…Trump base," he said on the show. "That's what's taking over, and that's the new Republican Party."
A good night for Democratic women in Virginia
In Virginia, all races that weren't uncontested except one in the Democratic primaries went to female candidates, and all four Democratic primaries in competitive districts went to women.
Virginia currently has only one female representative — GOP Rep. Barbara Comstock, who now faces a tough reelection bid in Northern Virginia against Democratic state Sen. Jennifer Wexton. Wexton beat a wide field of five other candidates to take nearly 42 percent of the vote Tuesday night.
Brothel owner and reality TV star wins primary
In a race that perhaps could only take place in Nevada, a brothel owner Denis Hof won his bid for GOP nominee vying for a Nevada State Assembly seat.
Hof has billed himself as, "Trump from Pahrump," and he is the author of "The Art of the Pimp." That's not a joke.
Confessed domestic abuser wins Democratic nomination in South Carolina
Archie Parnell, who recently admitted to abusing his ex-wife 45 years ago when he was 22, won the Democratic nomination in South Carolina's 5th Congressional District. Parnell's ex-wife accused him of attacking and beating her, according to government records surfaced by local media. Parnell refused to exit the race, apologizing for his past behavior.
Will California split in three? It'll be on the ballot
An initiative to place a plan to split California into three states will be on the ballot in November, after a venture capitalist garnered more than 400,000 valid signatures to get it there.
It's not the first time some have pushed for California to split, but the vast state has always had its geographical, cultural and economic divisions.
The plan would split the northern half of the state from the southern half, and sever the coastal region spanning from Los Angeles County to Monterey County. The proposal would separate the lucrative Silicon Valley from the state's southern half, and urban Los Angeles from urban Orange County. California voters will decide if that's preferable on Nov. 6.