California US House races could tip power in Congress
LOS ANGELES — U.S. House battles took shape in heavily Democratic California that could tip the balance of power in Congress, while former Trump administration Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke was in a tight match to claim the Republican nomination for a new House seat in Montana.
In Mississippi, Republican U.S. Rep. Steven Palazzo was forced into a runoff after a congressional ethics watchdog raised questions about his campaign spending and he faced his largest-ever field of primary challengers.
Primary elections across seven states Tuesday set up November contests in dozens of races, as Democrats look to protect the party's fragile majority in the House.
In a diverse district anchored in California's Orange County, Republican U.S. Rep. Michelle Steel, a South Korean immigrant, will face Democrat Jay Chen. The district, which includes the nation’s largest Vietnamese American community, is widely considered a toss-up.
In other districts in the nation's most populous state, two Republican House members were trying to surmount challenges tied to former President Donald Trump: One voted to support Trump's impeachment after the U.S. Capitol insurrection, while the other fought against it.
In Iowa, Republican state Sen. Zach Nunn won the GOP spot to take on the state’s lone Democratic House member, Rep. Cindy Axne, in a newly drawn district with a stronger GOP tilt.
A look at results in key U.S. House races Tuesday:
BATTLEGROUND CALIFORNIA: TRUMP HISTORY LOOMS IN KEY DISTRICTS
In 2020, Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Garcia won a narrow victory in a Democratic-leaning district north of Los Angeles. The former Navy fighter pilot was endorsed by Trump that year, then joined House Republicans who rejected electoral votes from Arizona and Pennsylvania and opposed Trump’s impeachment after the Capitol insurrection. That record will be a focus for Democrat Christy Smith, who earned a chance for a rematch with Garcia, after losing two years ago.
In a Democratic-tilting district in the state’s Central Valley farm belt, Republican Rep. David Valadao is highlighting an independent streak while contending with GOP fallout for his vote to impeach Trump over the Jan. 6 insurrection. Preliminary returns showed him holding an edge over Republican Chris Mathys, who made Valadao’s vote a centerpiece in his campaign to oust him. The winner will face Democrat Rudy Salas, a state legislator.
California uses a top-two election format in which only the two leading vote-getters advance to the November general election, regardless of party.
In the Central Valley, Republican Connie Conway won a special election to complete the term of former Rep. Devin Nunes, who resigned to head Trump’s media company.
MISSISSIPPI CONGRESSMAN WITH ETHICS TROUBLE TO FACE RUNOFF
Republican U.S. Rep. Steven Palazzo of Mississippi is headed to a June 28 runoff.
The congressman first elected in 2010 failed to win the GOP nomination outright on Tuesday, earning less than 50% of the vote.
His opponent will either be Jackson County Sheriff Mike Ezell, who is also campaigning on border security, or Clay Wagner, a retired banker who says he wants to limit taxation and regulation.
A 2021 report by the Office of Congressional Ethics found “substantial reason to believe” Palazzo, a military veteran who serves on the Appropriations and Homeland Security committees, abused his office by misspending campaign funds, doing favors for his brother and enlisting staff for political and personal errands. His then-spokesperson, Colleen Kennedy, said the probe was based on politically motivated “false allegations.”
FORMER TRUMP CABINET MEMBER SEEKS RETURN TRIP TO WASHINGTON
Montana gained a second congressional district this year thanks to its growing population, and Zinke, an Interior Department secretary under Trump, is one of five Republicans on the primary ballot for the open seat.
Zinke's rivals have been drawing attention to his troubled tenure at the agency, which was marked by multiple ethics investigations. One investigation determined Zinke lied to an agency ethics official about his continued involvement in a commercial real estate deal in his hometown. He’s faced a smear campaign over his military service from the extreme right wing of his party and questions about his residency following revelations that his wife declared a house in California as her primary residence.
Zinke, a former Navy SEAL, is widely considered the de facto incumbent, since he twice won elections for the state’s other House seat before stepping down in 2017 to join the Trump administration.
His primary opponents include former state Sen. Al “Doc” Olszewski, an orthopedic surgeon and hard-line conservative who has tried to paint Zinke as a “liberal insider.” The winner will face Olympic rower and attorney Monica Tranel, a Democrat, in the general election.
UPDATED: Please read and follow our commenting policy: