6 Takeaways From Tuesday’s Primaries

Voters made their voices heard in primaries and other important contests in Ohio, North Dakota, Nevada, South Carolina, and Maine.

Not all of the many June 11 races warrant close scrutiny. However, a relatively narrow GOP victory in the Ohio district that includes East Palestine and a close contest between a Trump-backed incumbent and a Freedom Caucus leader in South Carolina stand out.

Meanwhile, results from crucial Republican primaries in Nevada came in well after midnight on the East Coast. A think-tank veteran from rural Appalachia and a small business owner who served in the U.S. Army will face incumbent Democrats in a state that former President Donald Trump hopes to claim.

Here’s more on the big wins and losses across the country.

Mace Beats McCarthy-Backed Challenger

Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) survived a primary challenge from attorney Catherine Templeton.

Ms. Templeton was backed by former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, whom Ms. Mace helped oust from the leadership position last year. Former President Trump endorsed Ms. Mace.

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She is in a good position to win her district in November. It became significantly redder after the post-2020 Census redistricting, while the district of Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.) became bluer through the same process.

Ms. Mace will face Michael B. Moore, a businessman who won the district’s Democratic primary. Mr. Moore narrowly defeated Mac Deford, who has worked as a lawyer for towns in the state.

Mr. Timmons won his fight with state Rep. Adam Morgan, who chairs South Carolina’s Freedom Caucus, in the GOP primary for Mr. Timmons’s Fourth District.

Mr. Timmons criticized Mr. Norman for backing Ms. Haley at a late stage in the primary contest. He also lauded former President Trump, saying, among other things, that “the war in Ukraine would have never happened if Trump were in the White House.”

Despite former President Trump’s support, Mr. Timmons’s June 11 victory was fairly narrow. The incumbent led by 3 points with 99 percent of the vote counted.

With 98 percent of votes tallied, Mr. Rulli, an Ohio state senator, had 54.7 percent of the vote. Mr. Kripchak, a political newcomer with a background in acting and physics, received 45.3 percent of the total.

Mr. Rulli will thus finish the term of Rep. Bill Johnson (R-Ohio), who stepped down in January to become president of Youngstown State University.

After a spate of House GOP resignations, Mr. Rulli’s victory has grown the Republican majority to 219 versus 213 Democrats.

On social media, Dave Wasserman of the Cook Political Report described Mr. Rulli’s victory in a district that former President Trump handily won in 2020 as “a much closer margin than either party expected.”

Mr. Kripchak will face Mr. Rulli again in the general election.

Former NASCAR Driver Wins Maine GOP Primary

In Maine’s Second District Republican primary, Austin Theriault more or less lapped Michael Soboleski. With about 82 percent of the vote counted, he was ahead by 32 points.

Today the district is represented by moderate Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine), a U.S. Marine Corps veteran who once worked as an aide for centrist Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine).

In recent election cycles, the heavily rural Second District has trended red, with former President Trump carrying it in both 2016 and 2020. He gained an electoral vote both times thanks to the state’s approach to splitting electoral votes based on both the statewide total and what happens in its congressional districts.

If the past is any guide, it will be fertile ground for the MAGA message.

Sam Brown, Other GOP Victors Set Stage for November in Nevada

Afghanistan war veteran Sam Brown was the victor in Nevada’s Republican U.S. Senate primary.

“Next stop: November 5th,” Mr. Brown, a Purple Heart and Bronze Star recipient, wrote on social media soon after his win.

Mr. Brown defeated a number of Republicans, including dermatologist and former U.S. Ambassador Jeff Gunter, former state Rep. Jim Marchant, and retired Air Force Lt. Col. Tony Grady.

In a statement released late in the evening, Mr. Grady said he had called Mr. Brown to congratulate him, referring to the fellow veteran as Nevada’s “next U.S. Senator.”

The results from key House district primaries in Nevada came through early in the morning on the East Coast.

Drew Johnson, a policy expert who joined conservative and libertarian think tanks after growing up in rural Appalachia, won the Third District GOP primary. He defeated former state Treasurer Dan Schwartz, former state Sen. Elizabeth Helgelien, and “Halo” composer Marty O’Donnell, among others. Mr. Johnson will face Rep. Susie Lee (D-Nev.) in November.

In the state’s First District, Mark Robertson, a retired U.S. Army colonel and small business owner, beat restaurateur Flemming Larsen and other hopefuls. He will be running against another incumbent, Rep. Dina Titus (D-Nev.).

Armstrong and Fedorchak Victorious in North Dakota

Although some results out of Nevada took a while to come through, two closely watched primaries in the Midwest were settled pretty early.

In line with polling before the contest, he came away with a resounding victory—his lead was 46 points with 99 percent of the vote counted.

In November, Mr. Armstrong will be up against Merrill Piepkorn, a state senator and entertainer who went unchallenged in the state Democratic affiliate’s June 11 primary. Yet given the state’s strongly Republican electorate, it’s easy to see Mr. Armstrong’s June 11 victory as a coronation. No Democrat has been governor of North Dakota since the early 1990s when George Sinner was at the helm.

Earl Pomeroy was the most recent Democrat to represent North Dakota’s at-large district in the House, which he did in 2010.

She would replace Mr. Armstrong, who announced his run for governor after Gov. Doug Burgum, now a vice-presidential hopeful for former President Trump, said he won’t run for another term.