
Dan Malloy's new ad targeting Tom Foley
Voters in Connecticut, Minnesota, and Wisconsin went to the polls Tuesday night to pick nominees in a number of races that will be important this fall. Here's our recap of all the action, along with Daily Kos Elections' rating of each race's competitiveness:
• CT-Gov (R): As expected, 2010 nominee Tom Foley will carry the banner for his party once again, but considering how dominant a frontrunner he'd always been viewed as, his 56-44 win over state Senate Minority Leader John McKinney was kind of wimpy. Foley will now try to unseat the man who narrowly defeated him four years ago, Democratic Gov. Dan Malloy, who wasted no time in dropping a blistering new negative ad on Foley's head. (You can watch it above—Foley's brand of vulture capitalism makes Mitt Romney look like a socialist.) This race will be hotly contested. (Tossup)
• MN-Gov (R): Hennepin County Commissioner Jeff Johnson, who was formally endorsed by his party at its convention back in May, secured the GOP nomination for governor with 30 percent of the vote on Tuesday night. Former state House Speaker Kurt Zellers was in second with 24, and former state House Minority Leader Marty Seifert and businessman Scott Honour each took 21. Johnson will be a serious underdog to Democratic Gov. Mark Dayton. (Likely D)
• MN-01 (R): In something of an upset, businessman Jim Hagedorn won a 54-46 victory over Iraq and Afghanistan vet Aaron Miller, who had been touted by the NRCC. Hagedorn is the son of ex-Rep. Tom Hagedorn, who represented a seat in the area back in the 1970s, but he raised almost nothing—not that Miller raised much more. In any event, national Republicans are unlikely to spend much time on this district. (Likely D)
• MN-06 (R): Say goodbye to Michele Bachmann, friends: Ex-state Rep. Tom Emmer handily won the GOP primary to succeed her, defeating Rhonda Sivarajah 73-27. In this dark red district, he'll prevail easily in November. Only Bachmann, with her extraordinary lack of a filter, was capable of making this seat competitive, but give Emmer some time—he may yet one day fill his predecessor's considerable shoes. (Safe R)
• WI-06 (R): At around midnight ET Tuesday night, the AP called the GOP primary for state Sen. Glenn Grothman, who at the time had around a 10-point lead over fellow state Sen. Joe Leibham. But Sheboygan County recalculated its results in the wee hours, leading Leibham to claw his way back to just a 215-vote deficit—and the AP to withdraw its call. Both candidates now have 36 percent of the vote apiece, and a recount looks imminent.
Democrats very much want the absolutely batshit Grothman to hang on, since he could make this race interesting all on his own. After Republican Rep. Tom Petri announced his retirement, Team Blue actually managed to land a decent recruit on paper, Winnebago County Executive Mark Harris. However, Harris has raised almost nothing so far, but if Grothman spouts off, donors might open their wallets. (Likely R)