California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday continued his ongoing duel with red state governors, championing liberal policies on abortion and immigration in the face of some Republican leaders' moves on those issues.

Newsom, who is speculated to be a potential 2024 presidential contender (which he has played down), used his gubernatorial reelection campaign funds to place advertisements in six states with limited abortion rights after the Supreme Court’s June decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, overturning Roe v. Wade.

All of the Newsom-funded billboards advertise that California is ready to help residents who are seeking an abortion.

“You do not need to be a California resident to receive abortion services,” one billboard said.

In a tweet on Thursday, Newsom announced that he would be responding to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott having transported immigrants to Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts and to Washington, D.C. -- which DeSantis and Abbott say is in protest of Democratic border policies -- by requesting the Department of Justice investigate their efforts.

“I’m formally requesting the DOJ begin an immediate investigation into these inhumane efforts to use kids as political pawns,” Newsom wrote in a tweet, accompanied by the his request, addressed to Attorney General Merrick Garland.

Newsom has shot proverbial arrows at DeSantis before -- in August sending money across the country to help Florida Democratic gubernatorial nominee Rep. Charlie Crist defeat DeSantis this November.

-- ABC News' Isabella Murray

Two days ago, Don Bolduc won his race to be New Hampshire's GOP Senate nominee after months of making false claims that the 2020 election was stolen from Donald Trump the centerpiece of his campaign.

On Thursday, he made a 180-degree turn after beating the more moderate state Senate President Chuck Morse. Trump-endorsed Bolduc said he's now taking a "definitive" stance that Joe Biden's presidency is legitimate.

"I've come to the conclusion, and I want to be definitive on this: The election was not stolen," Bolduc said on Fox News, even while noting he still believes there was evidence of fraud. "Elections have consequences and, unfortunately, President Biden is the legitimate president of this country," he said.

The retired Army brigadier general said he came to his conclusion after talking to voters and doing his own research.

-- ABC News' Hannah Demissie

Continuing her rare break from her GOP border state allies on immigration, ​Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake says she's "not a fan" of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis flying two planes of undocumented immigrants to Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts.

Though careful not to mention DeSantis by name, Lake told Fox host Tucker Carlson Wednesday night it is "just taking people here illegally who shouldn't be here, moving them further inland."

Even so, Lake said, she "got a kick" out of the recent stunts by DeSantis and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott.

"Watching these liberal mayors just throw their hands up and say, 'We can't handle it,' because it's life every day for us in these border states," she said.

"My husband and I are saying that all the time, send them up to Martha's Vineyard," 80-year-old Yuma, Arizona, resident Sandy Fisher told ABC News.

-- ABC News' Libby Cathey in Arizona

What could be one of the most consequential midterm elections in recent history has seen an equally dogged primary cycle. Republicans and Democrats are sparring over every seat in the House of Representatives, 35 Senate seats and 36 governorships.

The stakes could not be higher with the ups and downs of the Biden presidency, the growing investigation into the Jan. 6 insurrection, the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade abortion rights and inflation running at historic highs. Candidates who support Donald Trump’s false claims that the 2020 election was stolen will appear on ballots in nearly every state in November.

ABC News has seven reporters embedded in key swing states across the country so readers can get on-the-ground accounts of what candidates are doing and voters are saying.

Welcome to Trail Buzz, an ABC News blog that brings you all the twists and turns from the midterm campaign trail.

Get live updates on campaign news and key reads and analysis from ABC’s reporters. We’ll link to excerpts from the Hulu streaming series "Power Trip" featuring ABC's campaign embeds, the smart takes from FiveThirtyEight, our "Democracy in Peril" series and the sharp political analysis each morning in "The Note."

The conservative Club for Growth is putting out a new ad looking to boost Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, as he faces a tougher-than-anticipated challenge from independent Evan McMullin.

The video, backed by an $800,000 reservation, will begin airing statewide Wednesday through Election Day. The 30-second clip features former Gov. Jon Huntsman, who served one term and was later the U.S. ambassador to Russia during the Trump administration.

"There's a lot of noise out there right now, so let me tell you what I know about Mike Lee. I've worked with Mike since I was governor, and I know his heart. He has the unshakeable integrity that's all too scarce in politics. You might not always agree with Mike. I don't. But we can all agree that principled leadership and fidelity to the Constitution are paramount in difficult times. Let's send Mike Lee back to the Senate," Huntsman says in the ad.

The late buy suggests 11th-hour handwringing by some of Lee's allies over McMullin's bid.

Lee recently went on Fox News to plead with Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, for his endorsement, and the FiveThirtyEight polling average only has Lee up by about 8 points after he won reelection in 2016 by more than 40.

McMullin has centered his challenge around Lee's communications discussing methods to challenge the 2020 election results after the race was over, accusing Lee of shedding his label as a "constitutional conservative." Lee notes he did not ultimately reject to certifying the Electoral College results.

He and his allies have accused McMullin -- who previously worked as a Republican congressional aide and then ran for president in 2016 as an independent -- of now being a closet Democrat, noting that the state Democratic Party endorsed him and did not run a candidate of its own. McMullin, though, has said he wouldn't caucus with either party in the Senate.

-- ABC News' Tal Axelrod