Biden and Trump bag more primary wins as Kentucky sees massive uncommitted vote
Frankfort, Kentucky - President Joe Biden and his Republican predecessor, Donald Trump, each added to their delegate counts on Tuesday as several states held primary elections.
Kentucky saw Democratic frontrunner Biden win with 71.3% of the primary vote and 37 delegates to the Democratic National Convention in August.
The victory was overshadowed by an enormous "uncommitted" vote, which has been linked with protests over the Biden administration's continued support for Israel's assault on Gaza. The option brought in an astounding 17.9% of ballots cast – enough to earn seven convention delegates.
On top of that, Marianne Williamson got 6.1% of the Democratic vote, while Congressman Dean Phillips garnered 4.8% despite suspending his campaign in March.
The Republican primary held the same day saw Trump win 84.6%, with Nikki Haley – who dropped out of the race after Super Tuesday – bagging 6.4%.
Oregon also held presidential primaries on Tuesday. Biden took home 88.1% of the Democratic vote, as Williamson got 7% and 4.9% of voters submitted write-in ballots – also linked with the protest option.
Trump ran uncontested in the Republican primary.
Biggest takeaways from down-ballot races
In Georgia, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis handily won her Democratic primary for reelection – her first race since launching a high-profile probe into Trump's alleged 2020 election interference. She will take on uncontested Republican Courtney Kramer in November.
Also in the Peach State, Republican-appointed Supreme Court Justice Andrew Pinson defeated former Democratic Representative John Barrow, who wanted to protect abortion rights.
Oregon saw Multnomah County Commissioner Susheela Jayapal, older sister of Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal, came second to Maxine Dexter in the race to represent the third district in the US House. Dexter had the backing of pro-Israel and Republican donors, while Jayapal received support from Senator Bernie Sanders and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
In the fifth congressional district, 2022 Democratic nominee Jamie McLeod-Skinner lost to the less progressive establishment favorite, state Representative Janelle Bynum.
Idaho also held elections for federal and state offices on Tuesday.
Cover photo: Collage: MANDEL NGAN / AFP & SCOTT OLSON / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP