Eyes on 2024: Gabe Amo wins in Rhode Island, Utah votes are still coming in

In Rhode Island Tuesday night, voters in the First District special election primary chose former Biden White House staffer Gabe Amo to advance to the general election ballot where, if he wins the Democratic-leaning seat, he’ll be the first person of color to represent Rhode Island in Congress.

Amo was endorsed by the Congressional Black Caucus and prevailed with over 30 percent of the vote, per the New York Times. He beat almost a dozen other candidates, including former state lawmaker Aaron Regunberg, who touted endorsements from Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Lt. Gov. Sabina Matos, who had the backing of EMILY’s List and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.

In this safely Democratic district, it’s likely that Amo will prevail in November’s general election to fill former Democratic Rep. David Cicilline’s seat. Still, he’ll go head-to-head with Republican nominee, Marine veteran Gerry W. Leonard Jr., who is seeking to be the first Republican elected to Congress from the district since the early 1990s.

Across the country in Utah, there is no decisive result in the special primary election to fill GOP Rep. Chris Stewart’s seat in the state’s Second District, as of publication time.

According to the New York Times, former congressional staffer Celeste Maloy leads with 38% of the vote, but former state lawmaker Becky Edwards is in a close second, with 36% of the vote. Former Republican National Committeeman Bruce Hough trails with 26% of the vote early Wednesday morning.

Like the Rhode Island election, whoever advances from this Utah primary is likely to win the general election in November, as this is a safely Republican seat. 

In other campaign news…

From one governor to another: Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie criticized his fellow Republican primary presidential candidate, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, on a Fox News podcast on Tuesday for not meeting with President Biden when he visited Florida last week in the aftermath of Hurricane Idalia. Instead, he praised Florida Sen. Rick Scott, a former governor, for meeting with Biden instead.

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Struck down: A federal district court struck down Alabams’s new congressional map once again for diluting Black voters’ power — months after the Supreme Court nixed a previous map for the same issue. The court will appoint a special master to redraw the lines, pending appeal. 

She’s in: Tennessee Democratic state Rep. Gloria Johnson announced Tuesday she’s running for Senate in a long-shot bid against Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn. 

He’s in: Former GOP Rep. Mike Rogers is launching a bid for Michigan’s open Senate seat, he announced Wednesday.

$20 million: A non-profit aligned with House Democrats is launching a $20 million voter registration campaign in key areas featuring marquee House races in the battle for House control. 

N-Y-Plea?: Embattled New York Republican Rep. George Santos is discussing “possible paths forward” with prosecutors after being charged with fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds, and making false statements to the House, according to the New York Times.