President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump emerged victorious in the Kentucky primaries, further solidifying their positions as the presumptive nominees for their respective parties. Kentucky’s primary results add to the delegate counts of both Biden and Trump, who have already secured the nominations despite facing challenges from within their own ranks.
In addition to the Kentucky primaries, voters in Oregon also had the opportunity to weigh in, with symbolic decisions providing additional delegates to the national conventions and offering a gauge of support for Biden and Trump among their party bases.
Despite securing the nominations and the departure of their rivals, Biden and Trump have continued to face dissent within their own parties. Biden has faced protest votes over his handling of the Israel-Hamas war, while Trump still sees support for his former rival Nikki Haley, who received approximately 6% of the vote in Kentucky.
With eight presidential nominating contests remaining, including primaries in Idaho, the District of Columbia, and other key states, the race for the White House continues. Voters in Kentucky, Oregon, Georgia, and Idaho also participated in state primaries to choose nominees for the U.S. House and other contests.
In California’s Central Valley, voters selected a Republican to replace former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in a special runoff election, with Vince Fong and Mike Boudreaux facing off to finish McCarthy’s term and compete again in November for the full two-year term.
In Georgia, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who is leading the prosecution of Trump in a 2020 election interference case, defeated her challenger Christian Wise Smith in the Democratic primary, while the presiding judge, Scott McAfee, also won his election.
Meanwhile, in Oregon’s Multnomah County, home to Portland, the progressive district attorney who took office during the 2020 social justice movement is facing a challenge from a candidate vowing to take a tough stance on crime.