Live Results for May 16 Elections, Including Primaries for Kentucky Governor and Philadelphia Mayor

Kentucky and Pennsylvania hold statewide primaries on Tuesday. In this off-year, there's only a few races we're tracking. There are also several mayoral and legislative special elections.

Kentucky Primary

Polls close at 6:00 PM local time. That's 6:00 PM Eastern, except 7:00 PM Eastern for areas observing Central Time.

Governor

Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear is seeking a second term. While he has the benefit of incumbency, a competitive general election is likely in this deep red state. That has drawn a large field of Republicans seeking to challenge him.

The frontrunner appears to be Attorney General Daniel Cameron. He was endorsed early - June, 2022 - by former President Donald Trump. However, not all prominent Republicans are on board. In the only recent public poll, Cameron (33% support) had opened up a 15 point lead over former UN Ambassador Kelly Craft (18%).  Two other candidates, Ryan Quarles and Eric Deters, got at least 10%.

Beshear has drawn two challengers in his primary, but is expected to be renominated.

Secretary of State

Reprising a theme from several 2022 elections for the office, the Republican primary here is yet another referendum on the 2020 presidential election. Secretary of State Michael Adams has rejected claims that there was widespread fraud. He has drawn two opponents. Stephen Knipper, who lost to Adams in 2019, has advocated numerous conspiracy theories around voting machines. Former State Rep. Allen Maricle believes the fraud was associated with ballots returned by mail.

The only Democrat to file is former State Rep. Charles Wheatley. As a result, there is no primary; Wheatley will advance to the general election against the Republican nominee.

Pennsylvania Primary

State Supreme Court

This is a regularly scheduled election for a ten-year term on the court. The seat has been vacant since last fall, when Chief Justice Max Baer passed away.  Had he lived, Baer would have vacated the seat at the end of 2022, after reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75.

Baer was part of a 5-2 Democratic majority on the Court. Now at 4-2, this election won't affect the balance of power, giving it a much lower profile than last month's election for a seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court.

Pennsylvania is one of eight states with partisan Supreme Court elections. As such there will be both a Democratic and Republican primary. Two candidates are competing for each party's nomination. Winners will meet in the November 7 general election. 

Polls close at 8:00 PM Eastern Time.

Mayoral Elections 

Three of the nation's 100 most populous cities will elect a mayor - or effectively elect one - on Tuesday.^{1 1}City rankings are based on July 1, 2021 Census Bureau population estimates. They are for the city itself, not the associated metropolitan area.  

Philadelphia (Primary)

Mayor Jim Kenney is ineligible to run for a third term. In this city, where registered Democrats outnumber Republicans by a 7-to-1 margin, the nominee will most likely be the city's next mayor. In 2019, Kenney won a second term by 80% to 19% over his Republican challenger.  The last GOP mayor, Bernard Samuel, left office in 1952.

A field of nine is competing in the Democratic primary. Polling shows a fluid race, with as many as five candidates in the mix. In the most recent poll, from Emerson College, Helen Gym, Cherelle Parker, and Rebecca Rhynhart were statistically tied.  Also seeing double-digit support were Allan Domb and Jeff Brown. Another 15% were undecided.

While there is still a primary, at-large City Councilman David Oh has no ballot opposition for the Republican nomination.

Jacksonville (Runoff)

Jacksonville is the largest city by land area in the lower 48 states. It is also the most populous with a Republican mayor. The incumbent, Lenny Curry, is ineligible to run for a third term.

No candidate received a majority of the vote in the March primary; the top two finishers advanced to this runoff. Democrat Donna Deegan led with 39%, while Republican Daniel Davis was second with 25%.

Overall, the four Republicans on the primary ballot received about 51% of the vote, Deegan and one other Democrat totaled about 48%. That points to a much closer runoff election. This is supported by a just-released survey from St. Pete Polls giving Deegan a lead of less than 2%, well within the margin of error.

Colorado Springs (Runoff)

Incumbent Republican John Suthers is ineligible to run for a third term. Yemi Mobolade (30% of the vote) and Wayne Williams (19%) were the top two finishers in the April 3 primary. As neither received a majority, this runoff is required.

The election is officially nonpartisan. In terms of party affiliation, Williams is a Republican while Mobolade is an independent.

This election is conducted entirely by mail ballot, although drop boxes are available. Regardless of how returned, ballots must be received by 9:00 PM ET.

Legislative Special Elections

Florida State House District 24

Republicans have a large majority in the Florida House of Representatives. The party holds 84 seats to 35 for Democrats. Tuesday's election is to fill the only vacancy. Members serve two-year terms; the next regular elections are in 2024.

District 24 is in the Ocala area. Republican Joe Harding resigned in early December after being indicted on federal wire fraud charges. Ryan Chamberlin won the March GOP primary.  No Democrats filed for the race, so Chamberlin will be the only name on the ballot. There is a qualified write-in candidate, Robert Fox.

Polls close at 7:00 PM Eastern Time.

Georgia State House District 68

Republicans hold a 101-78 partisan edge in the Georgia House of Representatives. There is a single vacancy. Members serve two-year terms; the next regular elections are in 2024.

District 68 is located in the southern part of the Atlanta area. Democrat Tish Naghise died in March. Only Democrats - five of them - filed for the special election. 

If no candidate gets a majority of the vote, the top two finishers will meet in a June 13 runoff. Polls close at 7:00 PM Eastern Time.

Kentucky State Senate District 28

Republicans hold an overwhelming 30-7 edge in the Kentucky State Senate. There is one vacancy. Members serve four-year staggered terms; the next regular elections for some seats are in 2024.

District 28 extends eastward from the Lexington area. Republican Ralph Alvarado resigned in January to accept a governmental job in Tennessee. 

There are three candidates on the ballot. The winner will serve the final 3+ years of Alvarado's term; the seat will be up again in 2026.

This election coincides with the statewide primary, so turnout may be somewhat higher than for a standalone special election. Polls close at 6:00 PM Eastern Time.

New Hampshire State House District Hillsborough 3

With 400 members at full strength, the New Hampshire House of Representatives is the largest legislative body in the United States. The narrowly-divided chamber currently has 200 Republicans and 196 Democrats. There are currently four vacancies. Members serve two-year terms; the next regular elections are in 2024.

Hillsborough 3 is a multi-seat district based in Nashua. There are three seats, only one of which currently has a sitting member - Democrat Fred Davis. 

This seat was previously held by Democrat Stacie-Marie Laughton, who resigned in December. Marc Plamondon was unopposed for the Democratic nomination. David Narkunas won the March 28 Republican primary.

Polls close at 8:00 PM Eastern Time.

Pennsylvania State House Districts 108 and 163

The narrowly-divided Pennsylvania State House has 101 Democrats and 100 Republicans, along with these two vacancies. Democrats won control by gaining about ten seats in the 2022 elections. Members serve two-year terms; the next regular elections are in 2024. 

If Republicans win both of these elections, they regain control of the State House. However, that will require flipping a Democratic-leaning district in suburban Philadelphia.

As these coincide with the statewide primary, turnout may be somewhat higher than for standalone special elections. Polls close at 8:00 PM Eastern Time.

District 108 is located in the central part of the state. Republican Lynda Schlegel Culver resigned in February after winning a special election to fill a vacancy in the State Senate.  There are three candidates on the ballot. Democrats last contested this district in 2016, losing by 77% to 23%. While redistricting has changed the boundaries since that year, it still projects as pretty safe GOP territory.  

District 163 is based in Delaware County, just west of Philadelphia. Democrat Mike Zabel resigned in March after being accused of sexual harassment. 

With District 108 almost certain to stay with the GOP, all eyes will be on this seat as it determines which party will control the House going forward. It's possible the outcome isn't close - Zabel was reelected by a 30% margin last November. However, Democrats are taking no chances, with President Biden recently endorsing Heather Boyd.

Boyd is joined on the ballot by Republican Katie Ford and Libertarian Alfe Goodwin.

Upcoming Elections

Statewide Primaries

• June 6
  • New Jersey Primary
• June 20
  • Virginia Primary

Special Elections

• May 30
  • Massachusetts State House Districts Suffolk 9 and 10
• June 13
  • Maine State House District 45
• June 15
  • Tennessee State House Districts 52 and 86 (Primaries)

Mayoral Elections

• June 6
  • Denver, Colorado (Runoff)
• June 20
  • Kansas City, Missouri