ST. PAUL, Minn. — Comedian Al Franken grabbed the Democratic nomination Tuesday for U.S. Senate in Minnesota, setting up a showdown with Republican Sen. Norm Coleman.
Franken, who gained fame as a “Saturday Night Live” cast member, easily beat six other candidates chasing the Democratic nod. Coleman trounced his only opponent, an expatriate living in Italy.
Minnesota voters joined those in six other states and the District of Columbia in deciding general election matchups.
• New York: In Brooklyn, longtime Rep. Edolphus Towns fended off a spirited challenge from Kevin Powell, a community activist who appeared on the first installment of the MTV reality show “Real World.” Voters on Staten Island chose candidates to replace Rep. Vito Fossella, who stepped aside after a drunken driving arrest led to revelations that he had fathered a child with a woman who was not his wife.
• New Hampshire: In a closely watched Senate race, Republican Sen. John Sununu and former Democratic Gov. Jeanne Shaheen easily won their primaries and resumed focus on their hard-fought rematch of 2002. Popular Democratic Gov. John Lynch easily defeated a retired teacher to seek a third two-year term.
• Vermont: Rep. Peter Welch, the state’s only House member, won the Democratic primary. Welch has no Republican opposition but will face Progressive and Liberty Union candidates in November.
• Delaware: State treasurer Jack Markell won the most expensive gubernatorial primary in the state’s history, beating Lt. Gov. John Carney. Markell, a Democrat, will face retired judge Bill Lee, who clinched the Republican primary.
• Wisconsin: Republican Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner — the state’s only incumbent U.S. House member to face a primary challenge — easily secured his nomination.
• Rhode Island: Democrat Sen. Jack Reed beat a longshot challenger to seek a third term.
• District of Columbia: Form- er Mayor Marion Barry easily held off four challengers seeking his City Council seat in the Democratic primary. Barry is expected to win a second four-year term in November in the overwhelmingly Democratic city.
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