Cronkite school of journalism at
Arizona state university.
Judy: There were intense and
expensive contests up and down
the ballot and across the
country, in yesterday's primary
elections.
Voters hit the polls in seven
states, with congressional races
testing the influence of Donald
Trump.
But the race drawing the most
attention today was local.
In San Francisco, voters
recalled Progressive district
attorney chesa boudin in a
contest where crime and public
safety were key issues.
President Biden, before boarding
air force one, said he saw a
lesson in the results.
>> I think the voters sent a
clear message last night.
Both parties have to step up and
do something about crime as well
as gun violence.
Judy: For more on the lessons
and takeaways for both parties
ahead of November, we turn to
Amy Walter of the cook political
report with Amy Walter, and
Marisa Lagos with KQED in San
Francisco.
Welcome to both of you.
Amy, you were telling us earlier
you didn't see one overriding
headline, but you saw a
similarity among the Republican
winners.
>> For Democrats, the goal they
see from these primaries on the
Republican side, what they would
like to see is the less than
ideal candidate on the
Republican side come out of
those primaries.
We have seen a couple examples.
Most notably in Pennsylvania,
where the candidate considered
probably the most out of step
with that swing state one the
primary.
In other races across the
country yesterday, what we saw
were the candidates that fit
those districts.
The candidates that Republican
strategists think are the best
fit for those districts win ther
E. This was a pretty good night
for Republicans in terms of
putting up the stronger of the
candidates to face Democrats.
Judy: We are in early June.
That is what it looks like.
In your state of California, it
is the results of the local
races drawing the most
attention, the San Francisco da
race and the Los Angeles mayor's
race.
>> In San Francisco come of the
recall has dominated headlines
for months.
This was a Progressive da, a
former public defender.
His parents spent decades in
jail as members of the radical
underground for a robbery that
included two police officers who
were killed.
In some ways, chesa boudin was
never like by law enforcement
but he made missteps and the
reality of the past two years,
the pandemic, the George Floyd
protests, the strange crime rate
changes over the pandemic.
That is playing in Los Angeles
where billionaire developer Rick
Caruso spent $40 million to
boost his name id and it worked.
He is in a runoff with Karen
bass, the more traditional
democratic candidate.
Caruso is a Republican, then a
no party voter then he
re-registered as a Democrat a
few months ago.
Judy: It is interesting,
listening to what she is saying.
There is always a desire at the
national level to say we see a
trend, but she says it has to do
with the individual
circumstances, with the
candidates and what was going on
in that race.
>> We have seen the
nationalization of politics for
some time.
There is also a truth to all
politics being local.
I think what Marisa pointed
out, while the issue of covid is
no longer a top issue like it
was in 2020, the impact is still
being felt.
It has the downstream effects on
crime and mental health and our
children and their schooling.
So we are still seeing the
aftershocks of this pandemic,
and in some ways it is playing
out on local races.
People feel frustrated with the
way the city has or hasn't come
back since the pandemic.
It is playing a part in federal
races as well.
75% of Americans believe the
country is often the wrong
direction.
A lot of that is the economy.
The pandemic may be officially
over.
But its impact is still here.
Judy: How did you see that in
California in terms of voter
interest in these races and
turnout, and how animated voters
were by what they were watching
and listening to?
>> Unfortunately, voter turnout
was low.
In San Francisco it was higher
than statewide, but people had a
lot of time to sit at home
during the pandemic and think
about what they didn't like.
We have seen recalls in
California.
There were always -- will always
be individual issues and local
races but there is anger with
what is not happening in the
world, whether it is homeless
folks or increases in crimes.
In a city like San Francisco we
saw less of an increase in
violent crime than most major
cities, Republican or democratic
lead.
People vote with their hearts.
There is a sense at the local
level that incumbents are not
getting the job done.
We saw the governor, the
attorney general coast into the
runoffs, so maybe not as angry
at state level officials.
>> On crime, is there some sort
of national message from this?
>> We are seeing it play out not
just in Los Angeles and San
Francisco, but in the New York
mayors race.
These are really local issues
but Democrats are feeling
somewhat wary of the fact that
Democrats had been labeled for
the last couple years as being
for defunding the police, not as
strong on pushing back on
criminals, electing more
Progressive da's.
Democrats have been trying for
the last two years to shed that
image in support policies and
Canada's -- candidates that are
stronger on these issues.
Judy: President Biden said we
are not for defunding.
I want to come back to you, Amy.
A number of house Republicans
voted for an independent
commission to look into what
happened on January 6.
Some of them have been pushed or
have left politics, but we
looked at, there are a number in
primaries yesterday and what do
we see?
>> Overall, we know that in the
next congress, there are going
to be fewer members either
because they retired or
resigned, or they lost in a
primary, fewer Republican
members who voted to impeach the
president, voted for the January
6 commission, even some who
voted for the bipartisan
infrastructure bill.
Supporting Donald Trump is still
a major issue, or showing fealty
to Donald Trump is a major issue
in these primaries.
What we have in Mississippi, one
of the Republicans,
representative guest, is likely
in a runoff with the Republican
who ran to his right in the
primary, saying he is not a real
Republican, he is a so-called
rio in part because of his
support for the January 6
commission itself.
Nothing else but for that.
When we talk about trump's hold
on the party, he may not have
the same influence that he would
like to have but in terms of the
kinds of people who are coming
back to Washington in 2023, very
few of them will have stood up
to Donald Trump.
Judy: And that is telling when
you put it together.
Amy, Marissa, thank you.
We appreciate it.