New York, Colorado and Utah primaries 2024: Bowman loses, Boebert wins
Three Trump-endorsed candidates also lost in Republican primaries.
June 25 was one of the most jam-packed primary election days of the year: Democrats and Republicans in Colorado, New York, Utah and parts of South Carolina picked their party's nominees for this fall's elections.
Two incumbent representatives — Jamaal Bowman and Lauren Boebert — who have made enemies inside and outside their own parties faced serious challengers in their primaries, but they met with different fates. Bowman lost to a more moderate Democrat, George Latimer, in what was the most expensive congressional primary in history. However, Boebert easily prevailed in her Republican primary despite running in an entirely new district.
It was also a bad night for former President Donald Trump. Going into these primaries, only one candidate he had endorsed for Senate, House or governor had lost; tonight alone, three did, including his preferred candidate to replace retiring Sen. Mitt Romney in Utah.
In addition, the fields are now set in some key congressional matchups this fall. In Colorado, Republicans avoided nominating far-right candidates who could have put normally safe red districts in play. Meanwhile, Democrats picked their fighters in two competitive New York House districts that could help them reclaim the House majority.
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.
Latest headlines:
Checking in on anti-abortion candidates
With the latest results in Colorado and Utah, lets check in on the anti-abortion Republicans we're tracking. Boebert and Crank are projected to win in their primaries in Colorado. And in Utah, Curtis is projected to win the GOP nomination for the Senate, incumbent Rep. Moore is projected to win his primary in the 1st District,and incumbent Gov. Cox is projected to fend off his challenger in the gubernatorial primary. We're still waiting on results in the state's 2nd and 3rd districts.
—Monica Potts, 538
Moore wins easily in Utah's 1st
I said I'd keep an eye on the Republican primary in Utah's 1st District, and I've done so, but there's nothing to see: The AP has already projected that Moore win will renomination, despite his loss among party activists at the GOP convention earlier this year. He's currently leading Miller, his more MAGA challenger, 73 percent to 27 percent, with 58 percent of the expected vote reporting.
—Nathaniel Rakich, 538
Curtis projected to win for Utah Senate
The AP has projected that Curtis will win the Republican nomination for Senate in Utah. With 64 percent of the expected vote counted, he currently leads Staggs 52 percent to 28 percent. Because of how red Utah is, Curtis will almost certainly win this seat in the fall, succeeding Romney in the Senate. With his quirky sock collection and pragmatic voting record, the mild-mannered Curtis will keep this seat in moderate hands.
—Nathaniel Rakich, 538
How the Salt Lake tables have turned in UT-02
Nathaniel, I’m old enough to remember when Maloy won the special election GOP primary for the 2nd District over Becky Edwards off of her strength in Washington County (where Maloy is from). Edwards nearly won that race because of how well she did in Salt Lake County. Now Maloy may need Salt Lake to bail her out while her opponent runs up the score in Washington!
—Jacob Rubashkin, Inside Elections
Final thought: Outside groups can help sway a primary, but the ground needs to be fertile
We've talked a lot about the many millions AIPAC spent to take down Bowman in New York's 16th District and about losing GOP candidates who faced sizable outside opposition from groups that opposed more anti-establishment Republicans in primaries. In many of these cases, these outside groups came in and spent a lot of money to oppose or support a candidate, and, unsurprisingly, that influenced the outcome!
But the candidates also mattered a great deal in making outside groups' lines of attack and support count in these primaries. Bowman wasn't that strong to begin with, for instance, and he'd made headlines for many wrong reasons in recent months. Someone like Williams in Colorado had angered a lot of people in his party, making it easier for the sizable outside investment against him to work. In South Carolina, Burns had Trump's endorsement, but he also had a very controversial background that may have encouraged outside groups to invest in Biggs to beat him.
—Geoffrey Skelley, 538