2022 Primaries
DeSantis' challenger, Manhattan's clash of Democratic titans: A quick look at Tuesday's primaries
Florida Democrats on Tuesday will pick their nominee to face Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) in the fall, while New York Democrats will choose their candidates in new congressional districts, most prominently in a battle between two powerful House veterans in upper Manhattan. Republicans have fewer competitive primaries on Tuesday, though polarizing repeat candidate Carl Paladino and New York state GOP chairman Lick Langworthy are facing off in a contentious primary in New York's 23 Congressional District.
In Florida, Rep. Charlie Crist (D) and Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried are the leading candidates in the Democratic gubernatorial primary. Crist, a 66-year-old former Republican governor, has raised $14 million in this election cycle, twice as much as Fried, and he has the backing of most of the state's Democratic establishment. Fried, 44, is Florida's only statewide elected Democrat and has portrayed herself as a progressive fighter and champion of abortion rights who's vying to become Florida's first female governor.
The winner will face DeSantis, a polarizing governor with a strong grip on Florida's GOP, more than $132.5 million in his campaign coffers, and pretty transparent presidential aspirations. Florida Democrats are also expected to pick Rep. Val Demings (D) to challenge Sen. Marco Rubio (R).
House Judiciary Committee Chair Jarrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) and House Oversight Committee Chair Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) were forced into an unwanted primary fight when Nadler's Upper West Side district and Maloney's Upper East Side enclave were combined into a new 12th District. They are facing each other and also underdog challenger Suraj Patel, a lawyer who is arguing for a generational shift from two lawmakers who have both served in Congress for more than 30 years.
In other New York races, Daniel Goldman, the chief investigator in the first impeachment trial of then-President Donald Trump, is the speculative frontrunner in the crowded Democratic primary in the new 10th District, covering lower Manhattan and Brooklyn. And Democrat Pat Ryan and Republican Marc Molinaro are competing in a special election to fill the 19th District seat vacated by Antonio Delgado (D) when he became lieutenant governor.