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By Scott Bland | 05/14/2018 10:00 AM EDT


With Elena Schneider, Maggie Severns, and Daniel Strauss

The following newsletter is an abridged version of Campaign Pro's Morning Score. For an earlier morning read on exponentially more races - and for a more comprehensive aggregation of the day's most important campaign news - sign up for Campaign Pro today. (http://www.politicopro.com/proinfo)

PRIMARY PREVIEW - "Road to Democratic House majority runs through Pennsylvania," by Campaign Pro's Elena Schneider in Allentown, Pa.: "Redistricting, retirements and resignations have roiled the state's political landscape over the last nine months, shuffling the partisan and geographic makeup of Pennsylvania's congressional districts and yielding a whopping seven open seats out of 18 ahead of Tuesday's primaries. The upshot of all that chaos: a wider playing field for Democrats in a state that helped deliver President Donald Trump the White House two years ago, with the opportunity to gain as many as five districts in November. ... Republicans have already responded with plans to spend
millions of TV ads in the fall. But the flip side to the turmoil has been an unusually raucous set of primaries, some of which started late because of the court-ordered redraw of Pennsylvania's districts in January. Those bruising contests - including one in which the two of the three leading candidates claim the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee discouraged them from running - could yield weak or wounded candidates in the general election."

- In PA-07: "Bernie Sanders-endorsed pastor Greg Edwards and well-known Northampton County District Attorney John Morganelli, the leader in public polling said the DCCC tried to maneuver them out of the race. ... Morganelli has attracted national notoriety among progressives for his vocal criticism of illegal immigration and past praise of Trump on Twitter. ... Morganelli said that as he was considering his campaign, he also received a call from a DCCC staffer who said: '"I don't know if you're the right guy because of your [Trump] tweets." And I said, "I'm going to run and I don't care what you think."' 'The DCCC didn't like any of us,' Morganelli added." The DCCC said in a statement that
it never asked anyone to drop out of the race. Full story.

THE ATTACKS ARE COMING FROM INSIDE THE HOUSE - "House members running statewide deal with Washington baggage," by Campaign Pro's Daniel Strauss: "House members running for statewide office in 2018 are running into an uncomfortable reality: Their time in Washington has never been less of an asset to their political aspirations. Last Tuesday's primaries saw three different House Republicans - Indiana Reps. Luke Messer and Todd Rokita and West Virginia's Evan Jenkins - crash out of hot Senate races against nominees who argued they were outsiders to the D.C. political system. ... Tuesday's Idaho gubernatorial primaries have become the next test of voter antipathy toward Washington, as Rep.
Raúl Labrador has retained a precarious front-runner status in the race. What was once set to be a sleepy primary has turned into a three-way bare-knuckle brawl, with Labrador, one of the biggest anti-establishment firebrands in the House, inundated with attacks related to his congressional tenure." Full story.

DEPT. OF 2016 WILL NEVER END - "State to monitor Broward election chief after judge finds 'unlawful' ballot destruction in Wasserman Schultz race," by POLITICO Florida's Marc Caputo: "The elections supervisor in Florida's second-most populous county broke state and federal law by unlawfully destroying ballots cast in Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz's 2016 Democratic primary, a judge ruled Friday in a case brought by the congresswoman's challenger who wanted to check for voting irregularities. In light of the ruling, Gov. Rick Scott's administration - which has expressed concerns with how Broward County Election Supervisor Brenda Snipes has handled the case - told POLITICO that he's reviewing
the judge's order and will have her office monitored. "During the upcoming election, the Department of State will send a Florida elections expert from the Division of Elections to Supervisor Snipes' office to ensure that all laws are followed so the citizens of Broward County can have the efficient, properly run election they deserve," Scott's office said in a written statement." Full story.

INTERNAL AFFAIRS - "GOP poll: Morrisey narrowly ahead of Manchin in margin-of-error race," by POLITICO's Alex Isenstadt "Newly-minted West Virginia Republican Senate nominee Patrick Morrisey holds a narrow lead within the margin of error over Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin, according to a new GOP survey. The poll, conducted by WPA Intelligence, shows Morrisey, the state attorney general, with a 46 percent to 44 percent lead over Manchin. A slim majority - 51 percent - said it was "time for a new person to be in the U.S. Senate." WPA Intelligence is not working on behalf of any candidate in the contest. The one-day survey of 400 likely voters was conducted on Thursday, two days after Morrisey
won the Republican primary." Full story.

Days until the 2018 election: 176

Upcoming election dates - Idaho, Nebraska, Pennsylvania and Oregon primaries: May 15 - Arkansas, Georgia and Kentucky primaries, plus Texas primary runoffs: May 22 - Alabama, California, Iowa, Mississippi, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico and South Dakota primaries: June 5 - Maine, Nevada, North Dakota, South Carolina and Virginia primaries: June 12.

Upcoming filing deadlines - Washington: May 18 - Arizona: May 30 - Vermont: May 31 - Alaska, Kansas, Wisconsin and Wyoming: June 1 - Hawaii and Minnesota: June 5 - Connecticut: June 12.

Thanks for joining us! You can email tips to the Campaign Pro team at sbland@politico.com, eschneider@politico.com, dstrauss@politico.com and mseverns@politico.com.

You can also follow us on Twitter: @politicoscott, @ec_schneider, @danielstrauss4 and @maggieseverns.

GOLDEN STATE - "A GOP surprise: House midterm hopes rise in blue California," by POLITICO's Rachael Bade: "Democrats boasted as recently as a few months ago that GOP Rep. Mimi Walters was as good as gone. Hillary Clinton carried her educated Orange County district comfortably in 2016. Then Walters backed some of the most polarizing planks of President Donald Trump's agenda: repealing Obamacare and a tax cut bill that scrapped popular deductions used by her constituents. Yet six months before Election Day, the 55-year-old former investment banker and other members of California's endangered GOP congressional delegation are upbeat about surviving the much-predicted Democratic wave. A voter
referendum on the November ballot to repeal a state gasoline tax - which Walters helped raise millions of dollars for - has invigorated the conservative base, they say." Full story.

WHISPER CAMPAIGN - "Katie Porter Survived Domestic Abuse, Only To Have It Used Against Her In Her Campaign," by HuffPost's Laura Bassett: "Porter knew that millions of women would be able to relate to her story \u2015 1 in 3 American women are physically abused by an intimate partner in their lifetimes, according to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence \u2015 but she also had little choice about coming forward. Her divorce and the protective order she obtained against her husband have become the subject of a whisper campaign in the competitive Democratic primary for California's 45th Congressional District. Several delegates to the Orange County Democratic Party told Porter they'd heard
rumors from a rival campaign [Dave Min's] that something in her divorce records might disqualify her in the general election. ... 'To be made to feel like I've done anything wrong \u2015 I'm just outraged,' Porter said." Full story.

- DCCC elevates Rouda to 'Red to Blue' in CA-48: "The DCCC has added CA-48 Democrat Harley Rouda to its "Red to Blue" program, taking sides in a difficult top-two primary where recent polling has shown Democrats in danger of getting locked out of the general election. Rouda is one of eight Democrats on the ballot in GOP Rep. Dana Rohrabacher's district, though several have dropped out and endorsed Rouda, a businessman. Rouda also announced an endorsement from Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) on Thursday." Full story.

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PRIMARY EVOLUTION - "McSally shifts support to stricter immigration bill," by the Arizona Republic's Ronald J. Hansen and Yvonne Wingett Sanchez: "Rep. Martha McSally has dropped her support for immigration-reform legislation that offers a pathway to citizenship for undocumented dreamers in favor of a less generous alternative that also would sharply reduce legal immigration. McSally, now a U.S. Senate candidate, instead is backing a bill that calls for allowing undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as children to apply for 'contingent non-immigrant status,' rather than giving them a shot at becoming legal permanent residents and eventually full U.S. citizens." Full story.

2020 TRAVEL WATCH - "Harris to headline Baldwin events in June," by Campaign Pro's Daniel Strauss: "Sen. Kamala Harris will travel to Wisconsin in June to give a reelection boost to fellow Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin. Harris will headline a rally for Baldwin in Milwaukee on June 9, according to a Democrat with knowledge of the event plans.

"That same day, Harris will also be the special guest at a fundraiser for the Wisconsin senator, according to an invitation obtained by POLITICO. Harris has been making the rounds as a top draw for Democrats running in major statewide races across the country. She recently fundraised for Sen. Debbie Stabenow in Michigan and on Friday is campaigning for former Georgia House Minority Leader Stacey Abrams." Full story.

FIRST IN SCORE - Rosendale pops second TV ad in Montana: Republican Matt Rosendale released his second TV ad on Monday, featuring Nancy Pelosi's "crumbs" comments about the GOP tax bill. "Montana needs a conservative who's willing to back the Trump agenda," Rosendale says in the ad. Watch the ad here.

- Emmert launches ad in TN-02: Republican Jason Emert, who's running in a crowded primary to replace Tennessee Rep. Jimmy Duncan, released his first TV ad on Monday. Emmert says that "Washington needs more businessmen and not more career politicians." Watch the ad here.

FIRST IN SCORE - HMP launches pro-Gottheimer billboard in NJ-05: House Majority PAC announced that it's putting up three billboards supporting Democratic Rep. Josh Gottheimer in Bergen and Sussex Counties. The billboard, accompanied with a picture of Gottheimer, says: "North Jersey's champion - fighting to cut taxes & create jobs!"

HELLO, ROBO - "Trump records robocall for Barletta ahead of Pennsylvania Senate primary," by POLITICO's Alex Isenstadt: "President Donald Trump is giving a last-minute boost to GOP Rep. Lou Barletta ahead of Tuesday's Pennsylvania Senate primary. Trump is releasing a two-minute robocall to Republican primary voters highlighting his endorsement of the four-term congressman. The call, a recording of which was obtained by POLITICO, is expected to be launched on Monday." Full story.

- Everytown for Gun Safety reported spending $555,223 in independent expenditures for Lucy McBath, who is running for Congress in Georgia's 6th District. The vast majority of the expenditure was in the form of a television ad buy. McBath is also a spokesperson for Everytown for Gun Safety. See the filing here.

- Power PAC Georgia ad boosts Abrams: Power PAC Georgia is airing a new ad in support of former Georgia House Minority Leader Stacey Abrams in the Georgia Democratic primary for governor. The ad is a biographic spot urging voters not to "be misled. As a leader she took tough votes to save Pre-K and expand HOPE. And as governor, Abrams will also fight to keep children safe from guns." Watch the ad here.

WAY DOWNBALLOT - "Independent slate of legislative candidates outraises Democrats, Republicans combined" in Colo. legislative districts, via ColoradoPolitics.com.

CODA - QUOTE OF THE DAY: "If something happened like that in my office-- somebody in my office said such a, such a thing about somebody, I would apologize on behalf of the office." - Sen. Lindsey Graham, speaking on CBS' "Face the Nation" about a White House staffer's comment dismissing John McCain because he's "dying."

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