WASHINGTON, May 9 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. states of North Carolina, Indiana, West Virginia and Ohio wrapped up their primaries Tuesday evening, allowing the Republicans and Democrats to take a glimpse of how U.S. political landscape has changed two years after Trump's election.
In the most intense and closely watched race in West Virginia, the GOP was relieved that ex-coal baron Don Blankenship came in third in the race for the party's senate nomination, despite his late surge riding on racism comments.
Blankenship, who just finished his jail term in 2017 due to involvement in a deadly mine explosion, took a leaf out of Trump's book, vehemently attacking the Republican establishment and scapegoating China during his campaign.
In his campaign ads, he coined the phrase "cocaine Mitch" in reference to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, whose father-in-law's shipping company once ran afoul with Colombian authorities after one of its cargo ships was found with 40 kilograms of cocaine on board.
Blankenship also sought to capitalize on McConnell's marriage to Taiwan-born Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao, underscoring his ties with China.
The accusation and discriminatory wording has invited harsh backlash, both from the media and other GOP members. An advocacy groups has reportedly poured more than 1 million U.S. dollars on ads against Blankenship, while U.S. President Donald Trump, no longer positioning himself as anti-establishment, told voters not to support Blankenship.
Despite the headwind, Blankenship saw a brief surge in polls days before the ballot was open, spooking Republicans who fear such a divisive figure would be unable to unseat the incumbent Democrat Senator Joe Manchin.
Ultimately the anti-Blankenship campaign prevailed, securing state Attorney General Patrick Morrisey for the party nomination with 47571 votes, Congressman Evan Jenkins came in second with 39,888 votes.
The vote also determined each party's candidate for the state's three House of Representatives seats. All three are currently held by Republicans.
In the state of Ohio, a swing state that often foretells the course of elections, voters cast their vote for party candidates for one Senate seat, the governorship, and its 16 House seats.
The two most contested spots were the Republican nomination for the Senate and the Democratic nomination for governorship.
In the end, Congressman Jim Renacci, blessed by Trump, came on top in the Republican race, while Richard Cordray, a former bureaucrat, would represent the Democrats in the governor race.
In neighboring state of Indiana, voters picked the candidates that would compete in the race for one Senate seat and nine House seats.
Joe Donnelly, who currently holds the contested Senate seat, will face challenge from Republican businessman Mike Braun, who came on top of a bloody battle with two Republican Congressmen.
Also worth mentioning is that Greg Pence, the older brother of the U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, won the Republican nomination for the state's 6th Congressional district.
Mike Pence congratulated his brother on twitter late Tuesday, tweeting that Greg has made the Pence family "proud."
The picture in North Carolina was less dramatic, as no Senate seats from the state is up for grab this year. Voters on Tuesday decided the match-ups for the state's 13 House seats.
Trump remained a looming figure in all of the campaigns that preceded Tuesday's primary. In West Virginia, Blankenship tried to copy Trump's success by tapping into voters' frustration with stalling politics, and in the Ohio Republican primary, all three candidates fought over who was Trump's most staunch supporter.
In both cases, Trump got what he wished for. He has tweeted against Blankenship and stood beside Renacci at a campaign rally, proving that despite controversies regarding his alleged collusion with Russia and affair with a adult film star, his grip on his base is still firm.
