July 19, 2022

Results from Recent Primaries 

Primary contests are being held today in Maryland, and election season will kick back into high gear on August 2nd with primaries in Arizona, Kansas, Michigan, Missouri, and Washington. Meanwhile, results from the June 21st and 28th primaries have been finalized. Here are highlights from primary contests in Virginia, Colorado, Illinois, New York, Oklahoma, and Utah, as well as runoffs and special elections in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Nebraska:

• Women won major-party nominations for governor in Colorado, New York, and Oklahoma. With these nominations, women have now tied the record for major-party gubernatorial nominations at 16 (first set in 2018).
• Two (1D, 1R) women nominees for the U.S. House in Virginia could make history in November. If elected, Republican nominee Yesli Vega (VA-07) will be the first Latina to represent Virginia in Congress, and Democratic nominee Taysha DeVaughan (VA-09) will be the first Native American woman to represent Virginia in Congress. All women who have represented Virginia in Congress to date have been white.
• Katie Britt won the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate in Alabama and is favored to win in November. If successful, Britt will be the first woman elected to the U.S. Senate from Alabama. Two (2D) women have previously served in the U.S. Senate from Alabama via appointment.
• In Alabama, Yolanda Flowers won the Democratic nomination for governor to challenge incumbent Governor Kay Ivey. Flowers is the third Black woman to be a major-party nominee for governor in the U.S., a record high.
• In Georgia, State Representative Bee Nguyen won the Democratic nomination for secretary of state. If successful in November, Nguyen will be the first Asian American woman elected statewide in Georgia. Janice Laws Robinson won the Democratic nomination for insurance commissioner. If successful in November, she will be the first Black woman elected statewide in Georgia. All women who have served in statewide office in Georgia to date have been white.
• Non-incumbent women won major-party nominations in U.S. House contests in CO-07, CO-08, IL-03, IL-13, and IL-17 where they are currently either favored to win or deemed competitive in November.
• Incumbent Representative Marie Newman became the second incumbent woman defeated in an incumbent vs. incumbent primary match-up after losing to fellow Democratic Representative Sean Casten. For more information about the impacts of congressional reapportionment for women candidates in election 2022, see our fact sheet Redistricting Effects on Women Congressional Incumbents.

Find out more with CAWP election analyses for the June 21st and June 28th primaries. Stay tuned to CAWP’s Election Analysis page for full results for women candidates and follow us on Twitter for real-time results on election nights.

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The Cambridge University Press journal Politics & Gender, which counts CAWP scholars Kira Sanbonmatsu and Kelly Dittmar among its associate editors, has created a virtual special issue in the wake of the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision. This issue compiles some of the numerous articles on abortion and politics published by the journal over its two-decade history. These articles cover a great deal of ground in the reproductive healthcare access discussion including gender and partisan dynamics in U.S. House votes on abortion issues, reproductive healthcare in American foreign policy, the debate about “medical necessity” in abortion care, comparative politics analyses, and more. These articles are available without a paywall until the end of August. Find this virtual special issue on the Politics & Gender website.