WASHINGTON – Two of America’s most famous progressive cities could take right turns on Tuesday when California and six other states hold primary elections.
This year’s sixth round of primary elections will not feature major Senate or governor battles. But primary elections will determine who can end up representing millions of Americans in California, Iowa, Mississippi, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico and South Dakota.
In Los Angeles, long-standing frustrations with problems like homelessness and crime have made a former Republican billionaire the unlikely frontrunner to become the next mayor of the highly democratic megacity.
Rick Caruso, a great real estate developer who only recently joined the Democratic Party and received a rare endorsement from Tesla’s CEO Elon Muskhas spent more than $ 34 million on his campaign – almost 10 times more than his main opponent, six-year-old Democratic Rep. Karen Bass.
While the money is helping, Caruso has taken advantage of growing anger over the state of the city and the perception that its democratic leaders have not been able to do much about it.
Homelessness continues to rise, while housing has become even less affordable. Crime is rising, traffic is getting worse, and high petrol prices are coming with extra plugs in a city notorious for its long commutes.
Los Angeles County, which for decades has been a magnet for Americans dreaming of a fresh start, saw more people leave the first year of the pandemic than anyone else in the United States, according to March census data.
With television commercials promising to “clean up LA” and to be “a doer … not just a speaker,” Caruso has portrayed himself as a non-ideological outsider with the ability and willingness to do what the city does. need, even if it anger activists or unions. His plan to hire 1,500 new police officers, for example, has received reprimands from other candidates who focus more on the LAPD’s civil rights issues.
Bass and her allies, meanwhile, have compared Caruso to another party changing billionaire real estate developer – former President Donald Trump – and highlighted Caruso’s previous donations to GOP candidates like Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and to anti-abortion causes.
“He’s a cheater,” the narrator says in an ad from a pro-bass super PAC calling Caruso “a lifelong Republican.”
LA’s most recent mayoral election has been a relatively sleepy affair, with only about 1 in 5 registered voters bothering to show up. But analysts say it could be different this year as time-limited mayor Eric Garcetti leaves the office with low approval ratings and polls showing a growing number of voters worried about the city’s direction.
However, competition is likely to continue into the autumn, as none of the candidates is expected to meet the 50 per cent threshold needed to avoid a departure that is scheduled to coincide with the November parliamentary elections.
It’s a similar story in San Francisco, another famous progressive city that has suffered from well-known urban problems – it experienced an even greater recent emigration than LA on a per-capita basis. But crime has become the central hotspot here, as opinion polls suggest voters are ready to fire their reformist district attorney in a recall on Tuesday.
Chesa Boudin made national headlines when he was first elected San Francisco’s top prosecutor in 2019. Boudin’s parents were members of the violent left-wing Weather Underground and imprisoned for much of his childhood, but Boudin went to Yale and received a Rhodes Scholarship. before, years later, joined a wave of reformist DA candidates embracing Black Lives Matter and calling for a new approach to policing.
Three years later, however, many San Franciscans have become irritated by a perception of impunity for low-level crime such as shoplifting, while violent crime is also on the rise; In December, Mayor London Breed declared a repression of “the domination of criminals who are destroying our city.”
Under Boudin, the DA’s office – which was once run by now-Vice President Kamala Harris – has seen an emigration of lawyers, with some even joining the recall efforts against their former boss.
The rest of Tuesday’s primary election has attracted less attention.
In Iowa, Democrats are expected to nominate former Representative Abby Finkenauer to challenge longtime Republican Senator Chuck Grassley in November, but while Finkenauer is seen as a strong candidate, the state has trended red, and Democrats may be lucky just to stick with their one. congressional seat.
Montana, meanwhile, got another congressional seat in the latest round of redistribution. Ryan Zinke, who served as secretary of state under former President Trump, is expected to win the GOP nomination for the Republican-oriented district.
In New Jersey, Trump urged his supporters to oust Republican Rep. Chris Smith, the state’s longest-serving member of Congress, after he broke up party lines to vote for Biden’s infrastructure plan, but Trump never really followed up or supported any of Smith’s GOPs. rivals. . Smith still has the backing of his party’s congressional leaders and is seen as a favorite.
Several of the state’s congressional districts are expected to be competitive this fall, with overcrowded Republican fields to take back seats recently won by Democrats as reps. Andy Kim and Mikie Sherrill.
At the only open congressional seat in the state that represents a deep blue area around Jersey City, the entire Democratic establishment has lined up behind Robert “Rob” Menendez Jr., son of Senator Robert “Bob” Menendez, even though he faces two others Democrats.
In New Mexico, Republicans will choose from a crowded field of candidates to meet Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, who is seen as vulnerable in November.
And in South Dakota, Gov. Kristi Noem, a national GOP rising star, is expected to cross for nomination. Trump had urged her to challenge Republican Senator John Thune of South Dakota because he did not support Trump’s attempt to overthrow the 2020 election, but she chose to stand for re-election instead, and Thune is also seen as a big favorite.
