Trump-backed races, Georgia self-funding, D.C. ranked-choice primaries test power
Rick Jackson put more than $100 million into Georgia’s governor runoff as Trump-backed races faced tests in Alabama, Oklahoma and Washington, D.C.’s first ranked-choice vote.
Trump’s grip on the Republican ballot met a practical test across Alabama, Georgia and Oklahoma as voters also opened the first citywide ranked-choice election in Washington, D.C. The day’s contests combined a $100 million self-funded gamble in Georgia, a Senate runoff in Alabama and open-seat races that will help define the 2026 midterm map.
In Alabama, Republican U.S. Rep. Barry Moore, who had Trump’s endorsement, failed to win the May 19 primary outright and was forced into a runoff with former Navy SEAL Jared Hudson for the U.S. Senate nomination. The race unfolded against a messy redistricting backdrop, with Alabama reverting to an earlier congressional map after a Supreme Court voting-rights ruling. That fight delayed some congressional primaries and showed how court decisions are still shaping the state’s political map.
Georgia offered the clearest test of whether Trump’s backing can overcome money and local standing. Trump-backed Lt. Gov. Burt Jones faced health care executive Rick Jackson in the Republican runoff for governor, and Jackson had poured more than $100 million of his own money into the race. The state’s Senate runoff added another layer: U.S. Rep. Mike Collins, buoyed by a last-minute Trump endorsement, met former football coach Derek Dooley in the race to challenge Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff. Together, the two contests showed Trump still matters inside Georgia Republican politics, but not always enough to settle crowded fields on his own.
In Oklahoma’s 1st Congressional District, Trump endorsed pastor Jackson Lahmeyer, who is connected to several members of Trump’s inner circle, in the Republican primary to replace Rep. Kevin Hern, who is running for the U.S. Senate. That race pointed to a different kind of Trump influence, built not just on a single endorsement but on relationships with loyalists already embedded in his orbit.
Washington, D.C., was playing by different rules. Voters chose a new mayor for the first time in 12 years and a new congressional delegate after Eleanor Holmes Norton’s 36-year tenure, using ranked-choice voting for the first citywide time. Polls were open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., and the new tabulation system would matter only if no candidate won a majority of first-choice votes. The crowded Democratic field, including Janeese Lewis George and Kenyan McDuffie, reflected a city split between establishment and progressive factions as Muriel Bowser leaves office.
California also held a special general election in the 14th Congressional District to fill the remainder of Eric Swalwell’s term, adding to a day that captured the shape of the 2026 cycle. Trump remains potent on the Republican side, but local money, redistricting and new voting rules are just as likely to decide who gets power next.
This article was produced by Prism’s automated news system from verified source data, official records, and press releases, then run through automated quality and moderation checks before publishing. The system is built and supervised by the people who set the standards it runs under. Read our full AI policy.
Did this article answer your question?
