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By Elena Schneider

With Kyle Cheney and Theodoric Meyer

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. (
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ABOUT LAST NIGHT - "Donovan wins, keeps New York City seat in GOP hands," by Campaign Pro's Theodoric Meyer: "Daniel Donovan easily won a special election to replace Rep. Michael Grimm on Tuesday, keeping a New York City swing congressional seat in Republican hands. Donovan, the Staten Island district attorney, was leading his Democratic opponent, City Councilman Vincent Gentile, 61 percent to 38 percent in the returns on Tuesday night, with 95 percent of precincts reporting, according to The Associated Press. Voters had just reelected Grimm, who had represented the district since 2011, in a landslide last November in spite of a 20-count federal indictment against him. He resigned shortly
after pleading guilty to one count of felony tax fraud in December."
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- In Denver, Mayor Michael Hancock, a Democrat, cruised to a second term, winning roughly 80 percent of the vote against nominal opposition, the Denver Post reported.
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- In Anchorage, Alaska, Democrat Ethan Berkowitz, who nearly beat GOP Rep. Don Young in 2008 and lost to then-Gov. Sean Parnell in 2010, defeated Republican Amy Demboski by a nearly 20-point margin.
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- In Columbus, Ohio, it appears two Democrats will vie to replace Mayor Michael Coleman after Tuesday's primary, with city Council President Michael Ginther winning a narrow majority of the vote in a four-way election, the Columbus Dispatch reports.
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- In Indianapolis, former U.S. Attorney Joe Hogsett and restaurateur Chuck Brewer cruised in the Democratic and Republican primaries, respectively, and will vie to replace GOP Mayor Greg Ballard.
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TROUBLE CONTINUES - "Comer denies abuse allegations," by Campaign Pro's Kyle Cheney: "Kentucky gubernatorial candidate James Comer on Tuesday denied accusations that he was physically abusive to a former girlfriend in college and lashed out Tuesday at his Republican primary rivals and the local press for what he called an orchestrated smear campaign. Comer was responding to a story on the front page of Tuesday's Louisville Courier-Journal in which a woman Comer dated in college in the early 1990s at Western Kentucky University, Marilyn Thomas, accused him of physical and mental abuse during their relationship. ... "I flatly deny that we had an abusive relationship," he said. ... Comer vowed
to continue his campaign and said his political opponents are employing ''House of Cards' tactics" because he's surging in the polls and fundraising.'"
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FIRST IN SCORE - The Republican State Leadership Committee will announce a new website this morning, which uses map graphics to track how they see the GOP road to an Electoral College win includes "states where state-level Republicans have achieved great political and policy success during the Obama era." You can find the map here:
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As Comer defends his past and the House Republican majority adds another House seat to its column, here's POLITICO's Morning Score: daily news, notes and essential information for the 2015 and 2016 election cycles.

Days until the 2015 election: 182; Days until the 2016 election: 553.

Thanks for joining us. We're eager for your news and feedback. Email us at
mailto:eschneider@politico.com
eschneider@politico.com or find us on Twitter at
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@ec_schneider .

FLORIDA SENATE RACE - POLITICO's Kyle Cheney and Marc Caputo reported: "Florida GOP Rep. Ron DeSantis will announce he's running for Senate on Wednesday, a source with knowledge of the decision confirmed to POLITICO - a move certain to delight conservatives who have been urging him to run to replace Sen. Marco Rubio. "As a candidate for Senate, I look forward to offering reforms based on limited government principles that will make our country stronger and more prosperous," DeSantis will say in a statement that was obtained by The Associated Press, which first reported the pending announcement. ... He ended the first quarter with just under $1.1 million in cash on hand in his House account.
His Senate bid will open up a safe GOP House seat in the Daytona Beach area of northeast Florida."
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ALASKA RIVALRY - "Begich's big decision: Challenge Murkowski," by POLITICO's Manu Raju: "Mark Begich nearly withstood the anti-Obama wave last year, losing his Senate seat by just 2 points to Dan Sullivan in the deep red state of Alaska. The defeat came after Begich clashed for months with Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who accused the Democrat of portraying her as an ally without her permission to boost his bipartisan cred. In 2016, Barack Obama won't be on the ticket, but Murkowski will be. And Begich has a decision on his hands. "I think you never say never in politics," Begich said in a recent interview on Capitol Hill when asked whether he'd run against Murkowski, a Republican. "Politics are
never going to be out of my spectrum."
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ANNOUNCEMENT SEASON, STILL - "Huckabee looks to broaden appeal during White House run," by POLITICO's James Hohmann in Hope, Ark.: "Mike Huckabee kicked off his second run for the White House on Tuesday, emphasizing his modest roots and playing up a message of economic populism designed to broaden his appeal beyond social conservatives. ... Huckabee, who won the Iowa caucuses and seven other states in 2008 and is near the top of early polls, hit on populist themes ... As a crowd of 1,600, including supporters who caravanned in from Iowa, chanted "We Like Mike," Huckabee leaned hard on the symbolic significance of appearing in Hope. The mantra of the speech was that he can take America "From
Hope to Higher Ground."
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- As Huckabee announced, the Club for Growth, a conservative advocacy group, released attack ads set to air in Iowa and South Carolina, criticizing Huckabee's record as Arkansas governor. Watch the ad:
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- POLITICO's Katie Glueck compiled a map of Huckabee's power players, including Sarah Huckabee Sandars (daughter, campaign manager), Chip Saltsman (senior adviser) and Bob Wickers (pollster, media consultant).
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PRIMARY DEBATE KICKOFF - "The Democratic National Committee announced today that they sanction six presidential debates beginning this fall, giving Hillary Clinton's challengers a limited number of chances to confront the former secretary of state on the debate stage. ... The DNC said a six-debate schedule "is consistent with the precedent set by the DNC during the 2004 and 2008 cycles," though Clinton and President Barack Obama actually met more than two dozen times in 2008. ... In order to crack down on other, unsanctioned debates, candidates will have to agree to an exclusivity clause and won't be eligible to participate in the DNC-backed debates if they appear elsewhere."
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- For Republicans, must be 'this' tall to ride - POLITICO's Dylan Byers gives a rundown on Republican debates: "The Republican National Committee is working with both Fox News and CNN to determine the entrance criteria for the bevy of Republican presidential candidates hoping to attend the early stage primary debates, Time's Zeke Miller reports. With as many as 17 possible GOP primary candidates, the decision over inclusion and placement could have significant influence on candidates' performances in early states like Iowa and New Hampshire."
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THE CLINTON CAMP - TACKING LEFT, MAKING NEW APPEALS - "Clinton pivots left on immigration," by POLITICO's Annie Karni: "It might be the early days of the Democratic primary, but Hillary Clinton on Tuesday appeared to move straight to the general election, challenging the Republicans to attack her on immigration by moving beyond President Obama on the issue. "This is where I differ from everyone on the Republican side," Clinton said, speaking at a roundtable at Rancho High School in Las Vegas, surrounded by a group of DREAMers. "Make no mistake, today not a single Republican candidate, announced or potential, is clearly and consistently supporting a path to citizenship. Not one. When they
talk about legal status, that is code for second-class status." Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio have said they support "earned legal status," which leaves the door open to a status that does not offer full citizenship rights."
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- Courting on the Hill - "Clinton's Capitol Hill charm offensive," by POLITICO's Lauren French and John Bresnahan: "Hillary Clinton is sending emissaries to Capitol Hill to let congressional Democrats know that the era of lackluster treatment from the White House will be over if she wins in 2016. And lawmakers who've been starving for attention under the Obama administration say her overtures couldn't be more welcome. ... It's the kind of outreach House Democrats have been hoping for from the Obama administration for years, but never gotten. ... Members of Congress are bound to work harder for her primary, but more importantly, her general election campaign, if they feel included."
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- And in the early primary states - "Hillary's Nevada play," by POLITICO's Gabriel Debenedetti in Las Vegas: "Hillary Clinton's return to Nevada, the site of one of her toughest battles with then-Sen. Barack Obama, is designed to project a sense that she's taking the Democratic nominating contest seriously, even in the absence of stiff competition. But Tuesday's visit is also about November 2016, when her ties to Hispanic voters and union members could prove pivotal for her presidential ambitions - and to Democratic hopes of recapturing the Senate. ... Nonetheless, Clinton's team sees ample opportunity in the one-day visit: The candidate can draw a contrast with Republicans on immigration
reform while personally laying the groundwork for a caucus organization that Nevada Democrats hope translates into broader voter registration and interest."
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FAMILIAR FACES - "Hillary's rope-line antagonist," by POLITICO's Hadas Gold: "In the usual scrum of reporters crowded around Hillary Clinton, sticking microphones, cameras and phones in the Democratic front-runner's face on her campaign trips to early states, one face and voice in particular stands out. Over and over again she calls out: "Mrs. Clinton!" "Hillary!" "Ma'am!" It's Andrea Mitchell, host of "Andrea Mitchell Reports" on MSNBC, a top correspondent for NBC News, and a veteran of the Clinton beat who will spearhead the network's Clinton coverage for 2016 - years after driving coverage on big stories like Whitewater, Bill's impeachment and Hillary's first forays as a candidate."
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OPPOSITION RESEARCH - America Rising needles Clinton on Keystone: America Rising, the Republican opposition research outfit, will hector Hillary Clinton on Wednesday for evading questions about whether or not she favors construction of the Keystone XL pipeline. The super PAC timed the hit to a fundraiser that Clinton is holding at the home of Tom Steyer, the billionaire environmentalist who poured tens of millions of dollars into the 2014 elections and who is perhaps the pipeline's fiercest foe.

- And so do the protestors - POLITICO's Andrew Restuccia reports: "Activists will call on Hillary Clinton to 'take a stand against Keystone XL' on Wednesday near a San Francisco fundraiser for the presidential candidate hosted by Esprit co-founder Susie Tompkins Buell. But they aren't organizing a similar gathering outside the home of billionaire environmentalist Tom Steyer, who is also holding a Clinton fundraiser on Wednesday. ... Henn said he did not have an estimate for how many people would show up to call on Clinton to oppose Keystone."

DRAFT WARREN REFOCUSES - "Warren met privately with 'Draft Warren' supporters," by POLITICO's Annie Karni: "Elizabeth Warren says she has no intention of jumping into the 2016 race. But she recently met behind closed doors with members of the 'Draft Warren' movement who are urging her to run for president. The Massachusetts senator held a private April 22 meeting with a small group of progressive leaders from across the country - including some vocal 'Draft Warren' supporters who continue to hold out hope that she'll enter the presidential race. In an hourlong meeting with her staff and a 30-minute meeting with Warren, the group of about a half-dozen top progressive
activists - including three who were active in the "Draft Warren" movement - did not discuss the draft campaign. Instead, the conversation focused on issues of social and racial justice. They highlighted specific issues the senator can use to influence the presidential debate in 2016."
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CASH RACE - "Cash flows in year of super PAC 2.0," by POLITICO's Tarini Parti: "The 2016 presidential race has already become the super PAC 2.0 election. The election will most likely break all outside spending records, but it's the experimental nature of how that money is raised and spent that will have a lasting effect on future elections. From the types of committees created to the timing and number of outside money vehicles involved, with billionaire donors now watching more closely than ever before, supporters of presidential hopefuls have added innovative twists to how they raise and spend outside money. They are going one step beyond the model supporters of President Barack Obama and
Republican Mitt Romney used in 2012 - the first presidential election that used super PACs."
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CODA - QUOTE OF THE DAY: "I was a media consultant for 25 years and while I did all the things I'm doing here I also produced advertising. That's a huge difference between American politics and British politics. Ads help define campaigns in America and they're absent here - which may be better for the commonweal but it's one less really powerful tool in the tool box." - David Axelrod, asked in an interview with POLITICO Europe to name the biggest differences between American and British campaigns.
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