by Wendi Strauch Mahoney at UnCover DC
Five states held primaries on Tuesday, with some garnering a great deal of national attention. Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Idaho, Kentucky, and Oregon held primaries on Tuesday in the busiest primary Tuesday of the election season so far. Some key races are still unresolved with razor-thin margins in some cases after Tuesday’s busy primaries. In most cases, it appears endorsements by former President Trump are still somewhat meaningful when it comes to winning elections.
Pennsylvania
Some of the most hotly contested races are in the state of Pennsylvania. The Senatorial primary there arguably tops the list of most-watched primaries in the country because of Trump’s controversial endorsement of celebrity doctor Dr. Mehmet Oz, and Pennsylvania is a key swing state. The Senatorial race between Dr. Oz and former hedge fund manager and establishment Republican David McCormick is still too close to call. Oz is ahead by only 0.2 percentage points or 2,565 votes (as of this publication). The race will be automatically triggered for a recount if the final tally sits at 0.5%.
With 96% reporting, Republican Senatorial candidate Kathy Barnette sits in third place with about 25% of the vote. She had a strong showing relative to other candidates, had little money behind her, and was up against an establishment Republican and a Trump-backed candidate. Her popularity surged in recent weeks, and she was targeted, in some cases unfairly, for some past comments and videos she posted on social media. For the Democratic Senatorial seat, Lt. Governor John Fetterman handily beat Conor Lamb, a marine and former federal prosecutor. Fetterman suffered a stroke a few days ago and went into surgery yesterday for a pacemaker.
Republican state Senator Doug Mastriano beat former Rep. Lou Barletta with room to spare for the governor’s seat. With 96 percent of the vote already reported, he has 44 percent of the vote. In November, he will face the uncontested Democratic candidate, Attorney General Josh Shapiro.
In Pennsylvania’s 12th District, progressive candidate Summer Lee declared victory over centrist Lee Irwin with the slimmest of margins. She would be the first Black woman to represent Congress in Pennsylvania if she wins. She allegedly endured over $3 million in attack ads from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) during her campaign. Other Pennsylvania House primary results can be viewed here. Eight Trump-backed congressional candidates won in the state—five were unopposed.
Pennsylvania’s primary is also notable because of a printing error related to about 22,000 mail-in ballots in Lancaster County. There were approximately 630,000 mail-in ballots in the state.
“AN ERROR BY A COMPANY THAT PRINTS BALLOTS FOR SEVERAL PENNSYLVANIA COUNTIES MADE THOUSANDS OF MAIL-IN BALLOTS UNREADABLE TUESDAY AS VOTERS WERE DECIDING HOTLY CONTESTED PRIMARIES FOR GOVERNOR AND U.S. SENATE IN ONE OF THE NATION’S MOST IMPORTANT BATTLEGROUND STATES,” VIA PBS
— DONALD J. TRUMP TRACKER (@DJTTRACKER) MAY 18, 2022
The problem wasn’t noticed until Tuesday morning when ballots failed to scan. According to WGAL, “[m]ore than 50 volunteers, county employees and representatives from both parties are working to remark and count the affected ballots…As of Wednesday, about 14,000 problem ballots still need to be counted.” The incorrect printing happened after the elections staff had approved test ballots. Also, in Pennsylvania, multiple polling stations allegedly “turned away thousands of voters due to ballot shortages.” Polls in Berks County were ordered to stay open an hour later by Judge James M. Lillis.
“JUDGE MAKES RULING TO KEEP POLLS OPEN IN BERKS UNTIL 9 PM DUE TO ‘WIDESPREAD’ PROBLEMS”
BERKS COUNTY ELECTION WORKERS ARE RUNNING INTO “WIDESPREAD” PROBLEMS WITH THE COUNTY’S NEW ELECTRONIC POLL BOOKS AND NOW THE POLLS WILL REMAIN OPEN LATE.HTTPS://T.CO/UOYSN4DHMN
— JULIA
(@JULES31415) MAY 18, 2022
The Republican committee convinced the court that voters were being disenfranchised due to issues with new poll books and resulting in long lines. According to the Reading Eagle, new electronic poll books were employed for the first time.
“The request to extend voting hours was made because of technical problems that arose Tuesday morning with new electronic poll books the county was implementing for the first time. After learning of the problem, election officials rushed backup paper poll books to each polling location in the county.
Kevin Boughter, chairman of the Berks County Democratic Committee, said the poll book issue caused delays at some polls and forced some voters to walk away without casting a ballot.
It’s been a total disaster at every poll that I’ve received word from,” he said. Boughter said he had heard from committee people from at least 25 precincts where there had been problems with the poll books.”