Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* Democrats won lopsided victories in two special elections in Minnesota on Tuesday, restoring the state’s House of Representatives to an even partisan split. The Democratic candidates, running in Democratic strongholds, prevailed by margins of 95% and 91%, respectively.
* Republican Rep. Vern Buchanan of Florida became the latest House member to announce his retirement this week. GOP officials are optimistic about holding on to his Sarasota-area seat.
* Speaking of the Sunshine State, Alexander Vindman, best known as the National Security Council official who testified against Donald Trump during his first impeachment hearings, has launched a Democratic campaign for a U.S. Senate seat in Florida. He’s joining an increasingly crowded primary field, hoping to take on Republican Sen. Ashley Moody in November.
* The Democratic redistricting effort in Virginia hit a significant snag this week when a state judge blocked the legislature’s bid to redraw the commonwealth’s map. Party leaders vowed to appeal the ruling.
* In Alabama’s gubernatorial race, Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s primary rival, Ken McFeeters, is challenging the senator’s eligibility, emphasizing allegations that Tuberville, who owned a home in neighboring Florida, does not meet the legal requirement of having lived in Alabama for seven years.
* Speaking of the Yellowhammer State, in Alabama’s Republican primary for lieutenant governor, state GOP chairman John Wahl is facing a new round of questions about his decision to use a homemade ID to cast ballots. Alabama Secretary of State Wes Allen, Wahl’s intraparty rival, posted a video to Facebook accusing Wahl of having voted with a “homemade fake ID.”
* And in Michigan, businessman Perry Johnson became the latest candidate to join the crowded Republican gubernatorial field this week. It will be Johnson’s third attempt at public office, following a failed presidential campaign in 2024 and a failed gubernatorial bid in 2022.
