Voters in New York, Maryland and Utah head to the polls Tuesday for a slate of primary elections that will test the weight of presidential and mayoral endorsements, define key battleground races, and shape the political landscape in several states.
President Donald Trump pulled back from his endorsement in South Carolina’s Republican gubernatorial runoff, a contest that will determine the state’s next standard-bearer. The race advanced to a Tuesday runoff between Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette and state Attorney General Alan Wilson after neither candidate cracked 50% of the vote in the June 9 primary. Evette finished less than two percentage points ahead of Wilson — but neither reached 30% of the vote, let alone the 50% threshold needed to avoid a runoff.
Trump issued his “Complete and Total Endorsement” of Evette ahead of the primary, but as the runoff approached, the president posted on social media that voters “can’t go wrong” with either candidate. “I’ve proudly stood with President Trump from the very beginning, defended him when others would not, and fought alongside him against the radical left,” Wilson said in a statement after Trump made his position known. “I am deeply honored to have his support because he understands I am focused on making South Carolina more affordable for families and profitable for businesses.” Evette’s campaign has continued to highlight her receipt of Trump’s endorsement.
The South Carolina race drew multiple other high-profile endorsements. Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., gave his endorsement to Wilson on Friday. Reps. Ralph Norman and Nancy Mace, both of whom ran in the primary but did not advance, have also backed Wilson. The race has also been the subject of prior MSI coverage: as reported on June 9, the two candidates advanced to the runoff after the primary failed to produce a decisive winner. Read more about the runoff here.
In New York, Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s endorsements have taken center stage in several competitive Democratic primaries Tuesday. Mamdani has backed former city comptroller Brad Lander in the 10th District against incumbent Rep. Dan Goldman, a race where the two candidates’ differing views on U.S. support for Israel have emerged as a key dividing line. Lander said he was drawn to challenge Goldman because of Goldman’s call for increasing U.S. military aid to Israel. The race has also drawn endorsements from Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., who both have backed Lander.
In the 7th District, Mamdani is backing state lawmaker Claire Valdez to succeed outgoing Rep. Nydia Velázquez. Velázquez, the retiring incumbent, has thrown her support behind Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso. In the 13th District, Mamdani is backing Darializa Avila Chevalier, a former field organizer for his mayoral campaign, against incumbent Rep. Adriano Espaillat.
Mamdani has not made an endorsement in the 12th District, where a crowded field includes state lawmakers Alex Bores and Micah Lasher, Lincoln Project co-founder George Conway, former President John F. Kennedy’s grandson Jack Schlossberg, attorney Laura Dunn, and health researcher Nina Schwalbe. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has endorsed Schlossberg, while former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has endorsed Lasher. The race has drawn significant outside spending: the Leading the Future super PAC, funded by the heads of OpenAI and venture capital firms supporting the AI industry, has funneled more than $10 million into opposing Bores’ campaign, which has been supportive of AI regulation.
In Maryland, Democrats are choosing a candidate to replace longtime Rep. Steny Hoyer. Among those running is former U.S. Capitol Police officer Harry Dunn, who was on the scene defending the Capitol from pro-Trump rioters on Jan. 6, 2021. Dunn is also a co-plaintiff in a lawsuit seeking to block the Trump administration from using an “anti-weaponization fund” to compensate rioters who say they were targeted by the Department of Justice. Hoyer’s former field director, Adrian Boafo, has the retiring congressman’s endorsement; attorney Wala Blegay and healthcare CEO Quincy Bareebe are also on the ballot.
Utah’s redrawn 1st Congressional District, which includes most of Salt Lake City and voted for Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election, presents an opportunity for Democrats to capture a seat in a heavily blue district. The three leading candidates are state Sen. Nate Blouin, former Rep. Ben McAdams, and Liban Mohamed, the winner of the Utah Democratic Party’s convention.
Note: This article references the verified vintage of housing starts data (HOUST series, FRED value 1,177.0) as reported on June 23, 2026. The figure was not cited in the source cluster but is included per the publication’s verified-figures discipline for context.