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

538 tracked over 10 competitive primaries for Senate, House and governor.

Tuesday, May 14 was another busy primary day, as voters in three states decided who would be on their general election ballots this fall. In Maryland, Democrats nominated women in two safely Democratic congressional seats, including Angela Alsobrooks, who is poised to become only the third Black woman ever elected to the Senate. In West Virginia and Nebraska, incumbent Republican representatives fended off far-right challengers.

538 reporters and contributors broke down the election results as they came in with live updates, analysis and commentary. Read our full live blog below.


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Maryland race has its GOP Senate nominee, but Democratic race is close

ABC News reports that former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan is projected to win the Maryland Republican Senate primary. He leads Ficker 68 percent to 24 percent with 28 percent of the expected vote reporting. The popular former governor can now look ahead to a difficult campaign to win in his blue state, but one that has put the race on the map.

And with 25 percent of the expected vote reporting in the Democratic primary, Alsobrooks holds a slim lead over Trone, 49 percent to 48 percent. It's early to make much of the county-level patterns here, but it may be a good sign for Alsobrooks that she's down only 53 percent to 43 percent in Montgomery County, which is Trone's home county and where part of his congressional district sits. Meanwhile, she's taking care of business at home, as Alsobrooks leads 69 percent to 29 percent in Prince George's County.

—Geoffrey Skelley, 538


'Johnny O' gets a projected W in Maryland's 2nd District's Democratic primary

ABC News reports John Olszewski, Jr., the county executive for Baltimore County, also known as "Johnny O," is projected to win the Democratic primary for Maryland's 2nd Congressional District. He will face Republican nominee Kimberly Klacik, a commentator and former nominee for Maryland's 7th Congressional District, in November.

—G. Elliott Morris, 538


Get ready for Senator Babydog

With Justice very likely to get elected to the Senate in the fall, the nation is about to meet Babydog, his bulldog who has become a folk icon in West Virginia during his governorship.

—Nathaniel Rakich, 538


Initial results in Maryland's 3rd District

With 27 percent of the expected vote reporting in the Democratic primary for Maryland's 3rd District, Elfreth leads Dunn 37 percent to 28 percent. Meanwhile, Lam has 10 percent. Morse, the Sanders-endorsed candidate I just mentioned, is much further back with just 1 percent.

—Meredith Conroy, 538 contributor


Democratic women we're watching

According to the Center for American Women in Politics, in states where filing deadlines have passed as of April 26, 36 percent of Democratic candidates for House races and 32 percent for Senate races are women. Today in Maryland, the share is a little lower: 32 percent of Democrats running for House and two out of 10 Senate candidates are women.

That said, women are competitive in a couple of Maryland's most critical primaries — which happen to be pretty crowded. A slew of Democratic departures — in the 2nd, 3rd and 6th Congressional Districts, as well as the Senate — have contributed to a wave of hopeful nominees, including Elfreth in the 3rd District and Alsobrooks for Senate. EMILY's List, the Democratic powerhouse that supports women at the crucial primary stage, has put its muscle behind Alsobrooks with a $2 million ad buy. But, despite typically investing in pro-choice women running in competitive districts, the group hasn't made an endorsement in Elfreth's race.

Meanwhile, in West Virginia, there are no Democratic women on the ballot today, while in Nebraska, there is just one running: state Sen. Carol Blood is running unopposed in the 1st District. If the incumbent Republican, Rep. Mike Flood, wins his primary, it will be Blood versus Flood, a most ominous general election match-up. But she will likely lose this, ahem, blood-red district in November.

—Meredith Conroy, 538 contributor