What Went Down During The May 17 Primary Elections

Sarah Frostenson

Dan brought up an interesting point earlier in the Democratic Senate primary about Fetterman and his ability to win over Black voters. Given Fetterman’s armed run-in with a Black jogger, it’s possible that Black voters are leery of his candidacy. This could be a major problem, too, for Fetterman in the general election, as turnout in what looks to be a Republican-leaning environment is going to be crucial for Democrats.

It’s early yet in the primary season, but let’s talk big picture about what we’ve seen regarding the two parties’ strategies around appealing to voters of color and/or fielding diverse candidates.

What do the two parties’ track records on tackling diverse fields look like so far?

Amelia Thomson-DeVeaux

8:46 pm

One race I’m watching is the Republican primary in Pennsylvania’s 7th District, where two candidates —Lisa Scheller and Kevin Dellicker — are competing to go up against incumbent Rep. Susan Wild, a Democrat. Scheller is a local businesswoman and former Lehigh County Commissioner and if she wins tonight’s primary, she’ll be going up against Wild for the second time. Scheller lost to Wild in 2020, but not by a lot, and the seat got redder in the latest round of redistricting (it now has a partisan lean of R+4). Not a lot to report from that race yet, but Scheller was seen as the favorite going in.

Dan Hopkins

8:45 pm

In Pennsylvania, Barnette’s late surge in the Senate race is particularly noteworthy because she has never had a lot of money. OpenSecrets lists four Republicans who raised more money. In fact, McCormick and Oz together raised 18 times as much money. In the governor’s race, Mastriano’s lackluster fundraising is similarly notable.

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