“Democrats are gathering to finalize their 2028 presidential primary calendar this week, setting the stage for a wide open contest to succeed President Donald Trump and chart a path ahead as the party’s voters oscillate between progressive and more moderate candidates,” the Associated Press reports.

“The Democratic National Committee is expected to vote at its summer meeting in Austin, Texas, on the new order that frontloads states with more diverse populations.”

Associated Press: “Democrats remain mixed over what ideological direction the party should take. But across a series of closely watched primaries, they are sending a clearer message about the party’s path forward: They want change…”

“The results so far this month deliver no clear ideological mandate. Instead, they add to mounting evidence from this year’s primaries of an Democratic appetite for turnover that is cutting across the party’s traditional divisions.”

Charlie Sykes: “The vote was close, but the verdict unmistakable: DSA candidate Francesca Hong — she of ‘cancel Thanksgiving’ fame — was defeated by her normie challenger, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, despite her having led in polls by double digits.”

“In other words…”

“Wisconsin Democrats stared into the electoral abyss and decided, on second thought, they would rather actually win elections than take a chance on what David Axelrod memorably called ‘zany liberal, faculty lounge exotica.'”

Rep. John Larson (D-CT) became the 7th House Democrat ousted in their primary this year, Axios reports.

“Only one other election cycle in the 21st century has seen this many incumbent losses in primaries.”

NOTUS: Longtime Rep. John Larson loses reelection bid in Connecticut.

“Democratic socialist Francesca Hong’s stunning loss in Wisconsin’s Democratic gubernatorial primary Tuesday night revealed limits to the far left’s power — and is undercutting the narrative of an emerging insurgency,” Politico reports.

“While progressive Peggy Flanagan cruised by 20 points in Minnesota’s Senate primary, and last week the further left Abdul El-Sayed squeaked through his Senate race in Michigan, Hong, the furthest left of the three, received no major national support and fell short.”

“For a movement that had been riding high off a string of primary victories this cycle, including the Democratic Socialists of America’s recent wins in New York and Colorado, the deflating Wisconsin result led to an immediate round of finger-pointing on the far left.”

NOTUS: The Democratic establishment strikes back in Wisconsin.

“Luke Bronin, the former Democratic mayor of Hartford, Conn. is projected to defeat incumbent Rep. John Larson (D-CT) and will advance to the November general election,” The Hill reports.

“The Democratic Party’s ascendant left flank, looking to build on its success in Michigan last week, faces fresh tests in two primaries in the Midwest on Tuesday,” the New York Times reports.

“A democratic socialist appears to be clearly ahead in the governor’s race in Wisconsin, and a progressive is facing off against a moderate in an expensive Senate race in Minnesota. Wisconsin, like Michigan, is a closely watched national battleground.”

“On the Republican side, President Trump’s choice to succeed Senator Lindsey Graham in South Carolina — Mr. Graham’s younger sister, Darline Graham — is running in a special primary election against four more experienced rivals. Despite Mr. Trump’s endorsement, a runoff is likely in the crowded race.”

CNN: Wisconsin weighs a democratic socialist governor and other key races to watch in Tuesday’s primaries.

“Joe Scarborough slammed Democrats for refusing to denounce the extremist views of some of the party’s most contentious figures this year, arguing that the political party is ‘fumbling the football at the two-yard line’ just like it did in 2024,” The Wrap reports.

Said Scarborough: “The Democratic Party has a choice to make. I said this day-in and day-out leading up to Kamala Harris’ election. You couldn’t watch an NFL game without seeing 300 ‘Taxpayers are going to pay for trans surgeries for convicts’ ads on NFL games.”

He added: “Even though they still pretend that did not move viewers, I think the Trump campaign spent $30 million on those ads, and it moved working class men, working class white men, working class Black men, working class Hispanic men.”