The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter

Louisiana’s new congressional map has been signed into law, ending a years-long saga over racial gerrymandering that culminated with Louisiana v. Callais. The Supreme Court’s landmark decision severely weakened Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, which had protected majority-minority districts and gave Louisiana Republicans the opportunity to draw a new, more favorable map.

The downside of taking a week off from column writing is the need to catch up. Since we last corresponded on May 18, Texas Republicans held their Senate runoff election, with controversial, baggage-laden state Attorney General Ken Paxton defeating four-term incumbent John Cornyn by almost 28 percentage points, 63.8 to 36.2 percent, and the already intriguing Maine Senate race has become even more interesting.

Voters head to the polls in six states Tuesday in another consequential primary night that will shape the contests for control of the House and Senate — as well as for the governorship of the largest state in the country.Democrats appear to have avoided a catastrophic lockout in California’s top-two gubernatorial race. But it’s still not clear which pair of candidates will advance to the November general election, and the state’s slow vote tabulation process means it could be days before we get a call.

South Carolina’s eleventh-hour redistricting attempt temporarily froze election season in the state. Following the Supreme Court’s landmark Callais decision, Republican legislators spent several weeks debating whether or not to redraw the state’s congressional map and push its primary to August. On May 26 — just two weeks before the June 9 primary — the state Senate shut the door on redistricting, at least for this cycle.

National Democrats have long been bullish on the open Iowa Senate race. On Tuesday night, their preferred candidate, state Rep. Josh Turek, secured the nomination to face off against GOP U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson in November.

At its core, the 2026 election is a battle between two powerful forces: the overall political environment (voters’ disapproval of President Donald Trump and his handling of the issues they care most about) and entrenched polarization (their tendency to end up in their partisan corners anyway).

Can a Democrat not named Jared Golden win Maine’s 2nd District? In a cycle like 2026, it’s certainly possible — but it remains a much tougher race without the Blue Dog on the ballot.

The Iowa governor’s race this week proved that President Donald Trump’s endorsement isn’t the only factor that matters in a Republican primary — but in the South Carolina gubernatorial contest next week, Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette still hopes that his recent nod will be enough.

It may not be generating as many headlines as the concurrent U.S. Senate race, but the Democratic primary for Maine’s governorship has plenty of intrigue of its own.

First Person is a series of quick videos from the Cook Political Report editors excl