Vermont primary: Christine Hallquist makes history as transgender candidate becomes Democrat governor nominee as Bernie Sanders is also victorious
The state boasts a number of unique — many of them progressive — candidates
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Your support makes all the difference.Christine Hallquist has become the first transgender candidate to win a major political party's nomination for governor.
As part of the primaries in Vermont, Ms Hallquist beat three other Democrats to secure the victory.
The 62-year-old Ms Hallquist is part of a wave of LGBTQ candidates seeking higher office across the US. Ms Hallquist is being supported by The Victory Fund, a political action committee that backs LGBTQ candidates across the country. The committed labelled her a “game changer.”
Before Vermont's election, only four transgender candidates had won primaries in 2018, all for house and senate seats in state legislatures, and have a general election ahead. Seventeen have lost primary or general elections and 21 have yet to face voters
Elsewhere, Bernie Sanders has won the Democratic Senate beating Folasade Adeluola as he seeks a third term in office.
With 98 per cent of precincts reporting, Mr Sanders had 94 per cent of the vote. It was not immediately clear which Republican he will face in the general election in November, given a close race between Brooke Paige and Lawrence Zupan that had just hundreds of votes in it.
Mr Sanders' win does not come as a surprise. The self-described Democratic Socialist won re-election in 2012 with about 71 per cent of the vote. Before that, in 2006, he carried about 65 per cent of the vote.
While Mr Sanders won the Democratic nomination, he is widely expected to reject it. Doing so has become a regular move for the notably independent senator over the years.
Phil Scott, the Republican governor in the reliably Democratic state, has won the GOP primary as he seeks re-election and will face Ms Hallquist.
Ethan Sonneborn is another candidate worth mentioning. He’s a 14-year-old progressive who decided to launch his campaign after violence erupted last year during a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, North Carolina. State law allows anyone who has lived in Vermont for four years to run for governor after securing enough signatures to get on the ballot, making Mr Sonneborn legally qualified despite his age. He secured more than 4,000 votes for an eight per cent share of the ballots.
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Vermont isn’t the only state that held a primary on Tuesday — Minnesota, Wisconsin and Connecticut also had elections to determine which candidates will face off come November.
Democrat Erin Murphy, running in Minnesota's gubernatorial primary, has cast her vote as primary day is underway.
Ms Murphy, a registered nurse, has unveiled her single-payer healthcare pathway for Minnesota as part of her platform. She has received an endorsement from the state Democratic Party.
Jahana Hayes, running in Connecticut's 5th Congressional district Democratic primary, would become the state's first black Democrat in Congress should she win, the New York Times reports.
Ms Hayes was previously honoured at a 2016 White House ceremony by former President Barack Obama as "Teacher of the Year".
Newcomer Folasade Adeluola, challenging Bernie Sanders in his re-election bid, claimed Mr Sanders has "divided the Democratic Party" in an interview with NBC.
US Vice President Mike Pence has called Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker "one of the best governors in America".
Minnesota Sen. Tina Smith, who was appointed amid Al Franken's resignation after sexual misconduct accusations, has tweeted that her campaign has proven to have been "people-powered".
Wisconsin GOP candidate state Sen. Leah Vukmir has tweeted her opposition to Democrat Sen. Tammy Baldwin's support of Sen. Bernie Sanders' "Medicare-for-all" bill.
Ms Vukmir called Ms Baldwin "Taxin' [Tammy Baldwin] on Twitter.
Wisconsin Democratic congressional candidate Randy Bryce, vying for Paul Ryan's seat, boasts endorsement by Social Security Works on Twitter.
Democratic governor candidate Kelda Roys in Wisconsin has visited the Harley-Davidson headquarters to call out Donald Trump's support of a boycott for the Wisconsin-based manufacturer.
Democrats are fighting to beat back Republican gains across the Midwest as the 2018 primary season roars through Wisconsin and Minnesota, two states where President Donald Trump's appeal among working-class voters threatens to upend decadeslong political trends this fall and beyond.
Tuesday's primary contests for governor, the US Senate and the House will measure the strength of Trump's fiery coalition against the energy of the Democratic resistance.
All but 10 states will have picked their candidates for November's general election by the time all votes are counted in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Vermont and Connecticut. While the full political battlefield isn't quite set, the stakes are clear: Democrats are working to topple Republican control of Congress and governors' offices across the nation.
Washington state Governor Jay Inslee, who leads the Democratic Governors Association, predicted that Tuesday would offer fresh evidence of a blue wave that would sweep Democrats into power this November.
"Trump has managed to alienate every form of human life on the planet," Mr Inslee told The Associated Press when asked about his party's appeal among white working-class voters. "They're tired of this chaos."
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