Primaries: Wyoming polls close as Liz Cheney braces for loss; Palin, Murkowski races show Alaska GOP shift

Former President Donald Trump’s tour of political vengeance will make a stop in Wyoming on Tuesday to try to unseat his biggest critic in the Republican Party.

Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., faces a Trump-backed challenger who is widely projected to defeat the vice chair of the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol riot and Trump’s role in fueling it.

While some Republicans have stood up to Trump – 10 in the House voted for his second impeachment – none has taken him on as strongly as Cheney, who has said Republicans cannot have both loyalty to Trump and to the U.S. Constitution.

Cheney’s race is the main event on Tuesday, which also features a special election in Alaska to replace the late GOP Rep. Don Young, who died earlier this year. Alaska voters will use ranked-choice voting to select a member of Congress from a field of three.

And Alaska GOP Sen. Lisa Murkowski is also in a primary to keep her seat.

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Polls close in Wyoming; Cheney and Hageman await results

The voting is over in Wyoming, as U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney and Donald Trump-backed challenger Harriet Hageman await their fates.

Recent polls established Hageman as a favorite, but Cheney hopes enough Democrats and independents cross over to the Republican primary to make things interesting.

This is probably the most watched race of the night, another test of Trump’s dominance within the Republican Party.

— David Jackson

Scene in Jackson, Wyoming on August 15, 2022 as voters stand in line for early voting in the primary. There is interest in the Cheney-Hageman race – the line for early voting Monday at the Teton County building is up the stairs and nearly out the door.

Who is Kelly Tshibaka?

A former Alaska state official who has the endorsement of Donald Trump will try to unseat Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski on Tuesday.

Republican-supported Kelly Tshibaka and Murkowski are both expected to advance beyond Tuesday’s primary in Alaska’s new voting system.

Kelly Tshibaka was born and raised in Alaska. She received a bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M University in 1999 and earned a law degree from Harvard University in 2002.

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Her father worked as a union electrician and her mother as one of the first workers at the startup of Alaska’s largest oil field, according to her campaign website.

— Merdie Nzanga

Read more about her: What to know about Kelly Tshibaka, who is trying to unseat Alaska GOP Sen. Lisa Murkowski

Two Trump antagonists on the ballot tonight: Cheney and Murkowski

In all, seven Republican senators — Murkowski among them  and 10 Republican House members joined every Democrat in supporting Trump’s second impeachment in 2021, after his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol as Congress tried to certify President Joe Biden’s victory.

Just two of those 10 House members have won their primaries this year. The rest have lost or declined to seek reelection. Cheney would be just the third to return to Congress if she defies expectations Tuesday.

— Associated Press

Where are they now: 10 House Republicans voted to impeach Trump. How have things gone for them since?

Flashback: Senate acquits Trump in historic second impeachment trial over Capitol riot

Alaska voting changes could help Murkowski

In Alaska, winner-take-all party primaries, like the one Cheney is facing, have been replaced by a voter-approved process in which all candidates are listed together. The four who get the most votes, regardless of party affiliation, advance to the general election in which ranked voting will be used.

Murkowski benefits from avoiding a Republican primary, “which she would have had a zero percent — I mean zero percent — chance of winning,” said Alaska pollster Ivan Moore.

Murkowski was censured by Alaska Republican Party leaders last year over numerous grievances, including the impeachment vote and speaking critically of Trump and her support of Interior Secretary Deb Haaland’s nomination.

Tuckerman Babcock, a former state Republican Party chair who is running for state Senate, said Murkowski has lost the support of many Alaska Republicans, which he called a “political reality over a record of many years.”

– Associated Press

Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) walks to the Senate Republican Luncheon in the U.S. Capitol Building on August 02, 2022 in Washington, DC.

Double Palin on Alaska ballot

Sarah Palin is on the ballot twice in Alaska: once in a special election to complete Young’s term and another for a primary for a full two-year House term starting in January.

Voters approved an elections overhaul in 2020, ending party primaries and instituting ranked voting in general elections. Endorsed by Trump, Palin finished first among 48 candidates to qualify for a special election. They were seeking to replace Young, who died in March at age 88, after 49 years as Alaska’s lone House member.

Palin is now trying to secure the win against the No. 2 and 4 finishers, Republican Nick Begich and Democrat Mary Peltola. The third-place vote-getter pulled out of the race after the special primary.

The House primary, meanwhile, has 22 candidates, including Palin, Begich and Peltola.

– Associated Press

Earlier this year: Sarah Palin has early lead in Alaska special primary for U.S. House seat

A voter theme in the Cheney-Hagerman race: No comment

JACKSON, Wyo. – The most frequent comment that voters have made about the Liz Cheney-Harriet Hageman race is … no comment.

Many voters said they did not want to discuss the primary because it has brought harassment from people who don’t share their opinion of Cheney, Hageman, or, especially, Donald Trump.

The political tensions of the Trump era have come to Jackson Hole, much to the dismay of residents of a community that prides itself on being a laid-back mountain-and-forest resort.

“It’s not good to be anti-Trump in this state,” said a voter who would identify herself only as Deborah. “And I don’t want to be a target.”

– David Jackson

A campaign sign supporting Rep. Liz Cheney is posted outside the Mead Ranch in Jackson, Wyo., Monday, Aug. 15, 2022.

Murkowski and Palin show deepening fissures in GOP

WASHINGTON – The almost continual daylight in Alaska this month is revealing more than the state’s sweeping mountains and shorelines. It’s also showing the deep fissures in the Republican Party.

Two candidates on the ballot for two different offices – Sen. Lisa Murkowski and former Gov. Sarah Palin – represent a growing divide in the GOP that is largely decided by a candidate’s allegiance to former President Donald Trump. Murkowski is fighting off a Trump challenger. Palin is fighting as a Trump challenger.

Murkowski is a moderate Republican who has crossed the aisle to vote with Democrats on some big issues. In February 2021, she was one of seven Senate Republicans to vote in favor of convicting Trump during his second impeachment, drawing ire from the former president and others in her party. She is the only one of the seven on the ballot this year.

Palin, once John McCain’s running mate in 2008, leans to the far right. She has been in lock step with Trump and joined him and MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell last month at a “Save America” rally in Anchorage. After the FBI search last week of the former president’s Florida residence, she called the country’s top law enforcement agencies “dangerous thugs.”

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Dallas, Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022.

Who else is in Jackson Hole? Liz Cheney nemesis Kevin McCarthy

Liz Cheney isn’t the only prominent member of Congress in Jackson Hole on this primary Tuesday.

House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy, who turned on Cheney during her battle with Donald Trump, is reportedly hosting a two-day fundraiser in Teton Village, Wyo. That’s about 10 miles from Jackson, where Cheney is expected to address supporters about her primary battle with Trump-backed challenger Harriet Hageman.

10 Republicans voted to impeach Trump: Will any be left in Congress after November?

NBC News reported that McCarthy would be in Wyoming on Monday and Tuesday “raising money for both the National Republican Congressional Committee and the Congressional Leadership Fund.”

Other Republican lawmakers who now oppose Cheney are also at the resort where McCarthy is holding court, according to news reports. (So is Elon Musk, reportedly.)

McCarthy, who is hoping to become speaker of the House after the midterm election, initially supported Cheney after she voted to impeach Trump over Jan. 6. He later changed his mind and backed Cheney’s expulsion from House GOP leadership over the Trump issue.

Cheney said McCarthy sold out to Trump and is part of the problem Republicans face moving forward.

– David Jackson

U.S. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., speaks to a South Carolina GOP fundraising dinner on Friday, July 29, 2022, in Columbia, S.C.

Another break between Cheney and GOP: criticism of FBI

Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., called out fellow Republicans on Thursday for their criticism of the FBI in the hours and days after its agents searched the Florida home of former President Donald Trump.

“I have been ashamed to hear members of my party attacking the integrity of the FBI agents involved with the recent Mar-a-Lago search. These are sickening comments that put the lives of patriotic public servants at risk,” Cheney tweeted on Thursday, shortly after Attorney General Merrick Garland spoke at the Justice Department about the search.

FBI Director Christopher Wray on Wednesday denounced the threats circulating online against federal agents and the Justice Department, calling them “deplorable and dangerous.”

Read the whole story: GOP Rep. Liz Cheney criticizes Republicans ‘attacking the integrity of the FBI’

Bracing for results in Wyoming

JACKSON, Wyo. – Liz Cheney’s political world, based in this valley resort town, is bracing for the worst – largely because Wyoming as a whole has become Donald Trump country.

Trump-backed challenger Harriet Hageman is heavily favored to win the Republican primary for Cheney’s U.S. House seat and end Cheney’s three-term congressional career.

“It will be closer than most people think, but I think Hagesman will win … unfortunately,” said Hal Wheeler, 40, the owner of a bicycle shop in the quaint western-themed downtown of Jackson.

Hageman supporters said that Cheney, in her zeal to get Trump, has ignored the needs of people in Wyoming, on issue ranging from energy production to drug abuse.

“I think she went clear overboard,” said Dan Winder, 69, a local property manager who stood in a long line at the Teton County administration building to cast an early vote for Hageman. “She represents Wyoming – she’s not representing Liz Cheney.”

– David Jackson

Previously: Trump glued to TV, Secret Service fears, Cheney forecasts ‘dam’ break: Takeaways from the Jan. 6 hearing

Vice Chair Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., speaks as the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol holds a hearing at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, July 21, 2022. Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., listens at left.

Alaska’s new ranked choice voting system

In the 2020 general election, Alaskans voted to rid their elections of partisan primaries, instead implementing a ranked choice voting system across all parties.

The new system has lowered the stakes in races like Alaska’s Senate primary, where incumbent Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, is all but guaranteed one of four spots in the November general election.

Two other candidates, Trump-backed Republican Kelly Tshibaka and Democrat Pat Chesbro, are expected to make the cut for the fall general election, the Anchorage Daily News reported.

– Ella Lee

Learn more: Alaska to use final-four primary, ranked-choice general election for Congress. Will others follow?

Three candidates emerge from crowded field in Alaska House race

Three candidates will be ranked by Alaska voters Tuesday in a special election for the late Republican Rep. Don Young’s seat.

The candidates — Democrat Mary Peltola and Republicans Nick Begich and former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin — came out on top after an unprecedented 48-candidate primary, held under the state’s new election laws got rid of partisan primaries, the Anchorage Daily News reported.

– Ella Lee

Nick Begich, a Republican seeking the sole U.S. House seat in Alaska, speaks during a forum for candidates Thursday, May 12, 2022, in Anchorage, Alaska.

Cheney touts Kevin Costner’s endorsement

Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., tweeted actor Kevin Costner’s endorsement of her, noting “real men put country over party.”

Cheney, who has been in the spotlight for her position on the House Jan. 6 committee investigating the Capitol attack and her criticism of former President Donald Trump, tweeted a photo of Costner in a T-shirt that read “I’M FOR LIZ CHENEY.”

– Merdie Nzanga

Endorsement count: Liz Cheney gets Kevin Costner’s endorsement and adds, ‘real men put country over party’

Liz Cheney: Democracy is ‘under attack and under threat’

Liz Cheney showed up at the polls Tuesday with a special guest – father and former Vice President Dick Cheney – and a special message: Win or lose this primary, the fight for democracy goes on.

Speaking briefly with reporters, Cheney said that, win or lose, the primary is the only the start of a long-term battle for the future of democracy and against her nemesis, Donald Trump.

It is “certainly the beginning of a battle that is going to continue to go on,” Cheney told CBS News. “And as a country, we’re facing a moment where our democracy really is under attack and under threat.”

The Cheneys stood in line with other voters before casting ballots in a primary in which Liz Cheney is a decided underdog.

Dick Cheney made a much-discussed ad during the campaign, saying: “In our nation’s 246-year history, there has never been an individual who has been a greater threat to our republic than Donald Trump.”

After casting her ballot, Cheney tweeted: “Proud to cast my ballot today. The challenges we are facing require serious leaders who will abide by their oath and uphold the Constitution- no matter what.”

– David Jackson

Money likely won’t help Cheney win Wyoming primary

Many elections are won by the best-funded candidate, but the money hasn’t shown signs of helping Cheney.

Through June 30, Cheney raised $11.3 million, and Hageman raised $3.7 million. That’s $15 million in a state with about 280,000 registered voters.  And yet, a July 15 poll from the Casper Star Tribune showed Cheney 22 points behind Hageman and an Aug. 11 University of Wyoming survey found that just over one quarter of GOP primary voters support incumbent candidate Cheney.

In the most recent quarter, Cheney received 76% of her donations from large donors, and 73% were from out of state residents and political actions committees, or PACs, which are often formed to raise money for a candidate or group of candidates.

Hageman is getting 40% of her donations from Cowboy State residents and PACs. Hageman also has more pull with small donors, who make up 43% of her donations, a signal of grassroots support.

– Erin Mansfield, Ella Lee

More campaign finance news: Trump PAC formed to push debunked voter fraud claims paid $60K to Melania Trump’s fashion designer

Who is Harriet Hageman, Cheney’s Trump-backed opponent?

Wyoming lawyer Harriet Hageman is the leading Republican challenger for Cheney’s congressional seat. She unsuccessfully ran for governor of Wyoming in 2018.

A former supporter of Cheney, having donated to her 2014 and 2016 congressional campaigns, Hageman unsuccessfully ran for governor of Wyoming in 2018 and sat on the Wyoming state Republican committee until announcing her challenge to Cheney.

The main difference between the two candidates is their relationship with Trump. Cheney was one of 10 Republicans to vote for Trump’s impeachment over his alleged incitement of a riot, and she lost her spot as head of the House GOP conference after refusing to endorse the former president’s false claims of election fraud. Hageman, on the other hand, has Trump’s endorsement and is vocal in her support of him.

– Ella Lee

Where are they now: 10 House Republicans voted to impeach Trump. How are they faring now?

The basics: Liz Cheney is up for reelection in Wyoming. What to know about her August primary

Cheney v. Trump

The long-awaited proxy battle between Wyoming Republican Rep. Liz Cheney and former President Donald Trump will play out Tuesday as Cheney faces Trump-backed lawyer Harriet Hageman for the state’s sole House seat.

Cheney — whose leadership on the Jan. 6 House committee and persistent criticism of Trump has landed her on the former president’s political hit list — is not expected to win the race. But she’s made it clear that, no matter the outcome Tuesday, she won’t stop her mission to eradicate Donald Trump from American politics.

“I clearly put my oath of office above political calculations,” Cheney told USA TODAY. “What surprises me is there are so few who have done that.”

— Ella Lee, Candy Woodall

Learn more about her: How Liz Cheney went from Trump backer and GOP leader, to his fiercest critic and GOP outcast

Dick Cheney calls Trump a ‘coward’ and a ‘threat’ in ad for Liz Cheney

WASHINGTON – Cutting a campaign ad for daughter and embattled Republican lawmaker Liz Cheney, former Vice President Dick Cheney blistered ex-President Donald Trump on Thursday as a threat to the nation’s future.

“In our nation’s 246-year history, there has never been an individual who is a greater threat to our Republic than Donald Trump,” the former vice president said in an extraordinary attack on a former president from the same party.

— David Jackson

Read the rest here: Dick Cheney calls Trump a ‘coward’ and a ‘threat’ in ad for Liz Cheney

Former Vice President Dick Cheney walks with his daughter Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wy., vice chair of the House panel investigating the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol insurrection, in the Capitol Rotunda at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 6, 2022.

When do the polls close

Just two states hold primaries Tuesday: Wyoming and Alaska.

Wyoming’s polls close at 9 p.m. ET, and Alaska’s polls close at midnight ET.

— Ella Lee

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Primaries tonight: Live updates on Wyoming, Alaska election results