Results from the May 24th Primaries

Primary elections were held yesterday in Alabama, Arkansas, and Georgia, as well as run-off primary contests in Texas, and the Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP), a unit of the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University, is tracking results for women candidates in these contests. Full results are available on the Election Analysis page on the CAWP website. There are still a number of races featuring women candidates that remain too close to call, so this page will update as results are determined. Complete context about women in the 2022 elections, including candidate lists, summaries, and historical comparisons, are available via CAWP's Election Watch.

Among the most notable results for women:

• In Arkansas, former White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders won the Republican nomination for governor and is highly favored in the general election. Meanwhile, the lieutenant governor’s race will be contested by two women, current Attorney General Leslie Rutledge (R) and Kelly Ross Krout (D), meaning there is a high likelihood that the next Arkansas governor and lieutenant governor will both be women. No state in U.S. history has had women concurrently serving as both governor and lieutenant governor.
• With her defeat by incumbent U.S. Representative Lucy McBath (D) in GA-07, incumbent U.S. Representative Carolyn Bourdeaux (D) becomes the first woman U.S. House incumbent defeated in the 2022 election. [Fact sheet: Redistricting Effects on Women Congressional Incumbents]
• Jasmine Crockett (D) won the Democratic nomination in TX-30, an open-seat contest currently rated as "Solid Democrat" by Cook Political Report, indicating a possible pick-up for a Black woman in the U.S. House from Texas.
• Women are major-party nominees for governor in Alabama, Arkansas, and Georgia in 2022. Arkansas and Georgia have never elected a woman governor. 
  • Incumbent Alabama Governor Kay Ivey (R) won the Republican nomination for re-election in a contest currently rated as “Solid Republican” by Cook Political Report. She will face the winner of a Democratic primary runoff election between two women – Malika Sanders-Fortier (D) and Yolanda Flowers (D) – ensuring that both major-party nominees for governor will be women. If successful, either Sanders-Fortier or Flowers would be the first Black woman elected statewide.
  • Former White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R) won the Republican nomination for governor of Arkansas and is strongly favored to win in November. She would be the first woman governor of Arkansas, as well as the first daughter of a former governor to fill the position formerly held by her father. Mike Huckabee was governor of Arkansas from 1996 to 2007.
  • Former State Representative Stacey Abrams (D) was unopposed in the Democratic primary for governor of Georgia. She will challenge incumbent Governor Brian Kemp (R) in November, marking a rematch of the 2018 gubernatorial election where Abrams lost to Kemp by 1.4 points. Abrams became the first Black woman to be a nominee for governor of any state in 2018; if successful this year, she would be the first Black woman governor in the U.S. as well as the first woman governor of Georgia. She would also be the first Black woman elected statewide in Georgia.
• Women have advanced in U.S. Senate elections in Alabama and Arkansas.
  • Katie Britt (R) has advanced to the Republican primary runoff for U.S. Senate in Alabama, where she will compete against U.S. Representative Mo Brooks (R). If successful, Britt would be the first woman elected to the U.S. Senate from Alabama (two women were previously appointed), as well as the first Republican woman to represent Alabama in the U.S. Senate.
  • Natalie James (D) won the Democratic nomination to challenge incumbent Senator John Boozman (R) in Arkansas, a contest that is currently rated as “Solid Republican” by Cook Political Report. If successful, James would be the first Black woman elected statewide in Arkansas.
• Women have advanced in other key statewide elective executive contests in Arkansas, Georgia, and Texas.
  • Incumbent Attorney General Leslie Rutledge (R), who is term limited, won the Republican nomination for lieutenant governor of Arkansas. She will run against Democratic nominee Kelly Ross Krout (D) in an all-woman general election contest. With their success, there is a high likelihood that Arkansas’ governor and lieutenant governor – who run on separate tickets in the state – will both be women in 2023.
  • State Representative Bee Nguyen (D) has advanced to the Democratic primary runoff election to challenge incumbent Secretary of State Brad Raffensberger (R) in November. If successful, she would be the first Asian American woman elected statewide in Georgia.
  • Rochelle Garza (D) won the Democratic nomination to compete to challenge incumbent Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) in November. No woman has ever served as attorney general of Texas. Garza would also be the first Latina to serve as attorney general of Texas.

For more information, see the full analysis of how women fared in yesterday's contests on our Election Analysis page. Complete context about women in the 2022 elections can be found on CAWP's Election Watch.