Roberts, Pompeo win primaries in Kansas

Sen Pat Roberts, a senior member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, won the Republican nomination for his fourth term, beating Tea Party challenger Milton Wolf, 48-41. “His victory raises the odds that for the first time since 2008, no Republican senator will lose in a primary,” said the Washington Post. “The perfect record so far for the party’s incumbents, at least in Senate races, has bolstered GOP hopes of winning control of the upper chamber…Republicans have no margin for error this year. They need to pick up six seats to win the majority, which Democrats have held since 2007.”​

At FiveThirtyEight, analyst Nate Silver says “the most likely outcome involves the Republicans winning about the six seats they need to take over the Senate, give or take a couple.” His run-down, which points to Republicans controlling the Senate, 51-49, says with Roberts as the nominee, Republicans have a 95 percent chance of winning the Kansas race. Silver gives the GOP a 60 percent chance of winning in Arkansas and gives Democrats a 55 percent chance of winning in Iowa.

Rep Mike Pompeo, sponsor of a bill to pre-empt state laws on labeling genetically modified foods, easily won the GOP primary in Kansas’ 4th congressional district. He beat his predecessor, Todd Tiahrt, by a 3-to-2 margin. Tiahrt raised the GMO labeling bill as an issue. Food Policy Action, which supports labeling, said, “Tiahrt’s focus on common sense GMO-labeling is proof that food issues can matter in elections.”

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