(NewsNation) — Six states will hold primary elections this week, with marquee matchups set to test the staying power of former President Donald Trump.
Three of the 10 Republicans who voted to impeach Trump are on the ballot in Washington and Michigan against Trump-backed challengers. Of the other seven who voted to impeach, four have retired, two won their races and one was beaten.
The Hill politics reporter Julia Manchester joined “NewsNation Prime” on Sunday to break down this week’s matchups.
“It’s really a test once again of this contest between Trump-backed candidates … and those Republican establishment-backed candidates,” Manchester said.
In the crowded Republican primary in Arizona, Trump has endorsed Blake Masters, and in Missouri, the state’s attorney general is squaring off with a current congresswoman and the former governor for an open seat. Trump hasn’t endorsed anyone in the Missouri primary.
“These two races are seen very much as a turning point in what direction the GOP could go,” Manchester said.
While he isn’t on the ballot this week or this year, Democrat Joe Manchin said on “The Chris Cuomo Project” last week that he won’t commit to supporting Joe Biden in 2024. Manchin is a Democrat in deep-red West Virginia, which possibly played into his remarks, Manchester said.
“We hear a lot of those progressive voices in the party … getting quite a bit more attention. However, Manchin is what I would call a conservative Democrat, so he is not a part of that growing movement within the party,” Manchester said.
Other Democrats over the past week have avoided answering the question of whether they’ll back Biden in 2024, showing just how much the future of the party is up in the air, Manchester said.
Also up in the air is whether House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will visit Taiwan during a trip to Asia this week. While Pelosi confirmed the trip Sunday, her official agenda makes no mention of Taiwan.
“She’s going to be walking a tightrope, regardless,” Manchester said. “This is her decision to make alone. If she goes, that could create even more shaky relations with China … and if she doesn’t go, there’s a possibility that she could look weak.”
