There are only a few congressional primaries worth watching tonight in Maryland, and even those don't look like they'll be all that exciting. But we're nothing if not thorough at Daily Kos Elections, so here's our primary preview. First up, though, is a map of the state's new congressional districts:
And now, off to the races:
• MD-Sen (D): Freshman Sen. Ben Cardin is being challenged by state Sen. C. Anthony Muse, who hasn't even filed a single fundraising report. Muse has said that he's running because there are no blacks in the Senate; his most prominent public difference with Cardin is that he opposes same-sex marriage, and he even spoke at a rally against Maryland's new marriage equality law. Cardin ran a couple of very well-produced TV ads as insurance and is set to cruise.
• MD-06 (D): State Sen. Rob Garagiola seemed to have it made: As a legislator, he was heavily involved in the redistricting process and helped redraw the 6th Congressional District into a seat that's much more favorable to Democrats—and himself in particular. He also earned heavy labor support, and thanks in part to his recent leadership on the state's aforementioned marriage equality law, his progressive credentials looked strong. But a funny thing happened on the way to the nomination: Super-wealthy financier John Delaney carpet-bombed the race with his own money, spending at a seven-figure level that Garagiola simply couldn't compete with. A late (and unanswered) internal from Delaney had him up 49-23, suggesting this race might not be close in the end. Garagiola's best hope is that union boots on the ground, plus a last-minute endorsement from Gov. Martin O'Malley, edge out Delaney's paid media campaign, but it's hard to be optimistic.
• MD-06 (R): At one point in time, it was pretty easy to believe that if Rep. Roscoe Bartlett wasn't doomed in the general election, he might very well get whacked in the primary. But I just can't see the latter happening now. An entire clown car's worth of challengers piled into the race, and all of them raised very feeble sums—and that includes two state legislators. What's more, even though a lot of the turf in the redrawn 6th is new to Bartlett, the new areas mostly contain Democratic voters, so the GOP primary electorate is one that's still very familiar with old Roscoe. He's still going to have a hell of a time in November, running in a district that went from one Obama lost 58-40 to one that he won 56-42. But it looks like Bartlett'll live to fight another day.