Mississippi GOP primary down to the wire — and possibly headed toward a runoff
Jonathan Ernst/Getty Images

The hotly contested Republican primary for U.S. Senate in Mississippi now appears headed for yet another round — but quite possibly with some strong momentum for Tea Party challenger Chris McDaniel, against the longtime incumbent Sen. Thad Cochran.
With 98 percent of precincts reporting, McDaniel has 49.6 percent of the vote, against Cochran's 48.8 percent — and a little-known third candidate, Thomas Carey, has the remaining 1.6 percent. Under Mississippi law, if neither candidate receives over 50 percent of the vote in the primary, McDaniel and Cochran will head to a runoff election, which would be held just three weeks from now on June 24.
The winner of the Republican primary will face the Democratic nominee, former Congressman Travis Childers, who easily won his own primary. And though Mississippi is a solidly Republican state, there has been some speculation about whether the very fiery and controversial McDaniel might create an opening for Democrats.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
In a display of continued energy for his campaign, McDaniel delivered a rip-roaring stump speech tonight to his supporters, in which he declared, among others things about Washington politicians: "For too long we let them have their way with us. Tonight in Mississippi, they heard us."
By contrast, Cochran did not deliver any statement at all to his own supporters.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Cytomegalovirus can cause permanent birth defects
The Explainer The virus can show no symptoms in adults
-
Summer in Seattle: Outdoor dining like nowhere else
Feature Featuring a patio with a waterfront view, a beer garden, and more
-
Ari Aster revisits the pandemic, Adam Sandler tees off again and Lamb Chop gets an origin story in July movies
the week recommends The month's film releases include 'Eddington,' 'Happy Gilmore 2' and 'Shari & Lamb Chop'
-
AI scammer fakes Rubio messages to top officials
Speed Read The unknown individual mimicked Rubio in voice and text messages sent to multiple government officials
-
SCOTUS greenlights Trump's federal firings
speed read The Trump administration can conduct mass federal firings without Congress' permission, the Supreme Court ruled
-
New tariffs set on 14 trading partners
Speed Read A new slate of tariffs will begin August 1 on imports from Japan, South Korea, Thailand and more
-
Elon Musk launching 'America Party'
Speed Read The tech mogul promised to form a new political party if Trump's megabill passed Congress
-
Judge blocks Trump's asylum ban at US border
Speed Read The president violated federal law by shutting down the US-Mexico border to asylum seekers, said the ruling
-
Thai court suspends prime minister over leaked call
Speed Read Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has been suspended, pending an ethics investigation
-
Senate passes GOP megabill after Alaska side deal
The pivotal yes vote came from Sen. Lisa Murkowski, whose support was secured following negotiated side deals for her home state Alaska
-
Trump sues LA over immigration policies
Speed Read He is suing over the city's sanctuary law, claiming it prevents local law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration authorities