Maryland, West Virginia and Nebraska primaries 2024: Alsobrooks beats Trone

According to a May survey from Emerson College/The Hill/Nexstar, a whopping 54 percent of West Virginia GOP primary voters say that the "economy (jobs, inflation, taxes)" is the most important issue facing the state. The second-most chosen issue was education at 11 percent, followed by "coal/energy" at 9 percent. No other single issue was selected by more than 5 percent of the electorate.

I've been tracking issue priorities in each state as the primaries have progressed, and this is the largest number of voters of either party I've seen so far who have selected the economy as the most important issue facing their state. It's also unusual that GOP primary voters in West Virginia aren't as concerned about immigration as those in other states: Just 4 percent said immigration was the most important issue. This is despite the fact that, in the same survey, 83 percent of GOP primary voters said they thought that "the number of migrants seeking sanctuary in the United States is a crisis," while 13 percent said it is "a problem but not a crisis." Only 4 percent said it is "not a problem at all."

—Mary Radcliffe, 538

If you're looking for a dark horse race that could prove very interesting, keep an eye on the Republican primary for West Virginia's 1st District. Incumbent Carol Miller is running here and hasn't done anything to upset the GOP base, but she is facing a robust challenge from former state Del. Derrick Evans. Evans is no ordinary former state legislator, though. He served all of 40 days in office, from Dec. 1, 2020, to Jan. 9, 2021, when he resigned three days after entering the U.S. Capitol as part of the pro-Trump mob attempting to stop certification of the 2020 election. He pleaded guilty to a felony civil disorder charge and served three months in jail, but he is now singing a different tune for his GOP primary campaign, defending the Jan. 6 insurrection and condemning his prosecution.

And Evans may have a serious shot. Bolstered by the endorsements of far-right Rep. Bob Good and Trump allies like pillow salesman Mike Lindell and former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, he has raised almost as much money as Miller: $982,000 to $783,000. There's no public polling in this race, but Miller appears to be looking over her shoulder. She recently started airing negative ads against Evans, attacking him for being, of all things, too liberal.

—Nathaniel Rakich, 538

In West Virginia's 2nd District, five Republicans are vying to succeed Mooney tonight, but one has almost all of the institutional support. State Treasurer Riley Moore has been endorsed by both establishment Republicans (former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, the West Virginia Chamber of Commerce) and tea partiers (Mooney, Americans for Prosperity) alike. And yes, he is also one of those Moores — Shelley Moore Capito is his aunt. He's the leading fundraiser in the race with $883,000 in contributions and is the strong favorite to win the primary, although retired Air Force Brigadier General Chris Walker has raised a competitive $732,000 as well.

—Nathaniel Rakich, 538

As usual, tonight we'll be tracking candidates in Maryland's, Nebraska's and West Virginia's Senate, House and gubernatorial primaries whose campaign websites use the phrase "pro-life," "sanctity of life," "right to life," "no abortion," "against abortion" or "unborn" and do not say abortion is an issue of states' rights.

Abortion has been illegal in West Virginia since a pre-Roe ban went back into effect after the Supreme Court's decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization in 2022. Nevertheless, several anti-abortion candidates are running in both the state's open Senate and gubernatorial races. Both Republican primary candidates in the 1st Congressional District are also anti-abortion, as are four of the five in the 2nd Congressional District. Republicans are favored to win all these races in the fall.

In Nebraska, seven candidates are on our list, including incumbent Sen. Pete Ricketts and all three of the state's House members. The Cornhusker State currently bans abortion after 12 weeks of pregnancy. A bill that would have banned abortion after six weeks died in the legislature last year, and there's an effort to put an abortion rights initiative on the ballot this year. Polling shows most voters in the state oppose more abortion restrictions, as is true of voters nationwide.

And in Maryland, Rep. Andy Harris and five of the seven Republicans running in the open 6th District are anti-abortion. Maryland is the most supportive state for abortion rights of the places we're watching tonight, allowing abortion throughout pregnancy, but these two congressional districts are the most conservative in the state: The 1st is solidly red, while the 6th is a toss-up.

—Monica Potts, 538