Democrats swept Virginia and New Jersey’s governor’s races, incumbents came out on top in several big-city mayoral races and voters in Maine said they wanted to join 31 other states in expanding Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act.
A rundown of the top races around the country on Tuesday:
TWO GOVERNORS
Voters in two states picked replacements for their term-limited governors — Democrat Terry McAuliffe in Virginia and Republican Chris Christie in New Jersey — in contests seen as an early referendum on the presidency of Donald Trump. In swing state Virginia, Democratic Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam defeated Republican Ed Gillespie. In New Jersey, front-running Democrat Phil Murphy overcame Republican Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno.
The stakes were high as both parties sought momentum ahead of next year’s midterm elections. Democrats haven’t won any special elections for Congress this year and the next Virginia governor will have a major say in the state’s next round of redistricting, when Congressional lines are drawn. Republicans were looking for a boost as their party is beset by intraparty turmoil between Trump and key Republicans in Congress.
BIG-CITY MAYORS
Democrat Bill de Blasio won a second term as mayor of heavily Democratic New York City. He easily defeated Republican state lawmaker Nicole Malliotakis and several third-party candidates.
In Boston, Mayor Marty Walsh won a second four-year term by beating City Councilor Tito Jackson after a low-key campaign.
Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan won a second four-year term by defeating state Sen. Coleman Young II, whose father was the city’s first black mayor. Duggan was first elected after a state-appointed manager filed for Detroit’s historic bankruptcy.
Two Atlanta city councilwomen, Keisha Lance Bottoms and Mary Norwood, were the top two vote-getters in the city’s mayoral race from a field of nearly a dozen candidates and are now headed to a Dec. 5 runoff. The winner will replace term-limited Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed.
In Seattle, former U.S. Attorney Jenny Durkan took a strong early lead in the race for mayor. Voters were choosing between Durkan and urban planner Cary Moon to replace former Mayor Ed Murray, who resigned earlier this year amid sexual abuse allegations. Ballot counting in the all mail-in election will continue over the next several days.
Charlotte, North Carolina, is getting its sixth mayor since 2009. Mayor Pro Tem Vi Lyles, a Democrat, beat Republican City Councilman Kenny Smith.
MEDICAID
Maine voters approved a measure allowing them to join 31 other states in expanding Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. The referendum represented the first time since the signature health bill of former President Barack Obama took effect that the question of expansion was put before U.S. voters. Maine’s Republican governor had vetoed five attempts to expand the program.
UTAH’S CONGRESSIONAL SEAT
The Republican mayor of the Mormon stronghold of Provo, Utah, won a special election to replace U.S. Rep. Jason Chaffetz, who resigned earlier this year. In an expected victory in the heavily Republican congressional district, John Curtis beat Democrat Kathryn Allen and third-party candidate Jim Bennett.
PHILADELPHIA DISTRICT ATTORNEY
Philadelphia’s next district attorney is Larry Krasner, a liberal Democrat who vows to end mass incarceration and the death penalty. He replaces Democrat Seth Williams, who was sentenced to prison last month for accepting a bribe.
CONTROL OF WASHINGTON
Democrat Manka Dhingra took an early lead in a state Senate race that will determine whether the Washington state Senate will remain the only Republican-led legislative chamber on the West Coast. If the seat flips to Democrats , Washington will join Oregon and California with total Democratic rule in both legislative chambers and the governor’s office. Under the state’s vote-by-mail system, ballots just need to be postmarked or dropped off by Tuesday, which means that final results may not be known for days.
AP