Primary elections 2022 latest: Trump-backed Republican wins in Illinois as New York’s governor cruises to victory

The two Republican primaries in Oklahoma on Tuesday are both likely to go to runoffs to be decided on 23 August.

In the special election to replace retiring GOP Senator Jim Inhofe, the winner is likely to become the next senator because the state is deeply red.

The other Republican Senator from the state, James Lankford, looks likely to retain his seat.

The frontrunner to replace Mr Inhofe is Rep Markwayne Mullin. He’s managed to garner the largest campaign war chest – $3m.

In two recent polls, Mr Mullin received almost 40 per cent of the vote, according to FiveThirtyEight.

He voted against certifying the 2020 election in support of former President Donald Trump’s false claims of fraud and tried to enter Afghanistan last year to evacuate a group of Americans as the US was withdrawing its troops from the country.

New York Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul is pushing her state’s efforts to strengthen abortion rights as she campaigns to hold on to the office after replacing former Governor Andrew Cuomo in August of last year.

“New York passed a series of laws to strengthen abortion rights in advance of the Roe decision, and ... Hochul has highlighted the state’s efforts in a series of ads in the run-up to her primary against Long Island Rep Tom Suozzi and New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams,” New York Editor Joseph Spector said in Monday’s Politico Nightly.

“Hochul is a big favorite in the race, and she is expected to use a big win as a springboard for the November elections — when she would look to be the first elected woman governor in state history,” he added. “If she wins the primary, she could face a Republican foe who does not support abortion. Out of the four GOP candidates running in their own primary Tuesday, only businessman Harry Wilson supports abortion rights, and he is an underdog.

“So if Wilson loses, protecting abortion rights in New York is likely to be a major topic, particularly for Hochul in the coming months.”

Polls are set to begin closing in a few key races soon as voters conclude casting ballots in eight states.

Voting ends in South Carolina’s US Senate runoff election to select the Democratic candidate to challenge Sen Tim Scott at 7pm. Catherine Bruce and Krystle Matthews are facing each other in a runoff election; Ms Matthews is a member of the state House of Representatives, while Ms Bruce is an author with no experience holding a political office.

The first precincts are beginning to report results in South Carolina’s primary. Krystle Matthews has a lead over Catherine Bruce, with just 3 per cent of the overall vote reporting.

Follow results live via NBC affiliate WYFF:

Results are coming in as polls closed in three additional states at 8pm est. Follow Oklahoma election results here at local news affiliate KJRH 2:

Mississippi’s runoff results are being covered by The New York Times:

Illinois results can be found at WGN 9 Chicago:

Despite facing a primary challenger backed by the state Republican Party chairman, Sen James Lankford appears to have easily won his party’s renomination to the US Senate. He’s likely to win a general election given Oklahoma’s deep-red bent.

With just 6 per cent of the vote in, Mr Lankford had a comfortable 23,000 vote lead over his nearest opponent, Jackson Lahmeyer.

The state’s governor, Kevin Stitt, also appears to have won his own primary for reelection.

Few candidates tonight will be able to say they took home the margin that JB Pritzker will see once all the votes are in.

With 10 per cent of the vote counted, the incumbent Democratic governor was declared the winner of his primary thanks to a comforable 89,000-vote lead he held over rival, Beverly miles. That margin will likely change before the end of the night, but it’s still impressive.

On the Republican side there was more good news for the governor. Darren Bailey led Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin by more than 20 per cent with 5 per cent of votes counted; Mr Pritzker and his allies spent heavily to sink the mayor’s campaign in the hopes of facing a candidate they viewed as less-electable in a general election matchup.

The left is celebrating after progressie Delia Ramirez, a political newcomer, defeated a Chicago alderman for the Democratic Party’s nomination for the newly-drawn 3rd congressional district of Illinois.

Ms Ramirez was endorsed by Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who celebrated news of Ms Ramirez’s victory by a wide margin Tuesday evening.

Richard Irvin, the mayor of Aurora Ill., has lost his primary to Darren Bailey, a member of the Illinois state senate. His loss is a victory for JB Pritzker, who with his allies spent around $30m to tank his campaign.

Mr Pritzker easily won renomination on Tuesday as he seek’s reelection to the governor’s mansion; his campaign sought to boost a candidate they saw as less electable in the GOP primary given his own dominance in the Democratic primary.

New York Gov Kathy Hochul has won her primary for the Democratic Party’s nomination as she seeks her first full term in the governor’s mansion. She was elevated to the office after Gov Andrew Cuomo resigned last year and since then has faced persistent personal criticism from Mr Cuomo’s closest aides.

The governor will face a Republican candidate in the fall, but is favoured to win in the deep-blue stronghold.

Ms Hochul had a little more than 66 per cent of the vote with just under a third of the results tabulated.