Florida and Alaska hold primaries reshaped by new district maps

Florida and Alaska held primary elections on Tuesday, seen as an early test ahead of this fall's midterms, which will decide control of a Congress where Republicans currently hold a narrow majority. The contests are also being read as a gauge of public sentiment on President Donald Trump's second term.

In Alaska, incumbent Republican Senator Dan Sullivan, a Trump ally seeking a third term, faces a challenger who shares his exact name, appearing on the ballot as "Daniel J Sullivan Jr." Republicans allege the second Sullivan, a retired teacher, is a decoy candidate backed by Democrats meant to confuse voters — a claim he denies. Former US Representative Mary Peltola, the first Alaska Native to serve in Congress, is also running and would become the state's first Alaska Native senator if elected in November.

In Florida, a GOP-driven redraw of congressional boundaries has produced unusual matchups. Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz, in Congress since 2004, is running in the newly configured 20th district in Broward County after her previous seat was redrawn to favor Republicans. Some activists have criticized her, as a white candidate, for entering a historically Black district, amid broader concerns about declining Black representation in Congress following a Supreme Court ruling that weakened civil rights protections. Her rivals include rapper Luther "Uncle Luke" Campbell and former Representative Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, who faces criminal charges over the alleged theft of $5m in disaster relief funds and resigned from Congress in April.

Elsewhere, Trump cast his own primary ballot by mail in Florida, according to Palm Beach County records confirmed by the White House. In California, Shasta County plans to hire Tina Peters, a prominent election denier recently freed from prison, prompting an investigation by the state. The White House also drew criticism after its rapid-response social media account personally attacked CNN correspondent Kristen Holmes, invoking her children, after she asked Trump about remarks from Senator Jon Ossoff; CNN publicly defended her. Separately, Trump renewed threats to bomb Oman over its role in stalled Iran negotiations.