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By Emily Schultheis (
mailto:eschultheis@politico.com
eschultheis@politico.com ; Twitter: @emilyrs) and Jose DelReal (
mailto:jdelreal@politico.com
jdelreal@politico.com ; Twitter: @jdelreal)

With help from Elizabeth Titus, James Hohmann and Tarini Parti

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://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca9facd433c84c43f15ce52ff8101ac589d8142a51fc737102
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e66605cf5db97f9a45375bc086e25b7af3a960fa846a60262ff7 )

BIG NIGHT FOR THE GOP ESTABLISHMENT -TILLIS AVOIDS RUNOFF: Tuesday night was a good night for the Republican establishment: state House Speaker Thom Tillis won the North Carolina Senate primary outright, avoiding a costly and potentially ugly runoff election; Reps. Walter Jones (NC-03), Renee Ellmers (NC-02) and Dave Joyce (OH-14) all survived primary challenges.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca7b16d663464c3834b6be575e0fe3d78ee8b9352dea24a16d
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca7b16d663464c3834b6be575e0fe3d78ee8b9352dea24a16d

FINAL RESULTS: (100% of precincts reporting): Tillis 222,394 (45.7%), Brannon 132,074 (27.1%), Harris 85,376 (17.5%)

FIVE TAKEAWAYS, via Campaign Pro's James Hohmann: 1) The establishment will be emboldened to play in more upcoming primaries: If Tillis had been forced into a July 15 runoff, he almost certainly would have won the nomination. ... Tea party forces might have felt inspired to pour money into the state, and there would have been days of stories about the GOP's continuing primary problem. 2) The electability pitch works: The North Carolina results are a strong indication that the GOP rank-and-file is undergoing a shift from prioritizing purity to prizing victory. Just like D.C. strategists, voters watched Akin and Richard Mourdock blow it in 2012 and didn't want a repeat this year. 3) Rand Paul
falls short: The fact that Paul could then not keep Tillis under 40 percent shows the ceiling many Republicans believe still exists for libertarian candidates in the party. It's a fresh data point for Paul critics to say he doesn't have the juice he'd like to think he does. 4) The Republican chances of winning the seat just shot up: Republicans now avoid two months of intra-party squabbling in a purple state. There's little to suggest that conservatives who didn't back him in the primary will stay on the sidelines. More money will start flowing in, and conservative groups will stop hitting Tillis from the right. 5) Tea party candidate quality matters: Tillis might have been looking at a
runoff tonight had he been up against a more credible candidate. ... The Club for Growth, a conservative outside group that might have been able to offset the Crossroads and Chamber, never got involved in the primary. Club officials vetted Tillis' chief challengers and weren't impressed.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca5451090052defd128e07d628c8d65bff2b1b5c1c11d8560c
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca5451090052defd128e07d628c8d65bff2b1b5c1c11d8560c

RAND PAUL, posting on Facebook late Tuesday night: "Now that the primary is over, it is time for our side to unite to defeat the Democrat who cast the deciding vote for Obamacare, Kay Hagan, in November. I endorse Thom Tillis and look forward to working with him in the Senate. I congratulate my friend Greg Brannon on a well fought race and encourage all the candidates to unite for victory in November."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca1dfc0a62966edb06933e1bb9fbf037d91ac3567e2180e99d
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca1dfc0a62966edb06933e1bb9fbf037d91ac3567e2180e99d

NATIONAL DEMS PUSH BACK: In a memo released early this morning, the DSCC argues that in order to get their candidates through primaries, establishment Republicans have "embraced the tea party's candidates and policies in order to beat them." Read the full memo:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca891789771186868de428d76d473cbffd3ec1cec9e989a5e8
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca891789771186868de428d76d473cbffd3ec1cec9e989a5e8

(More coverage of May 6 primary results below, and full results at
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8cac93a798d63b43ce20fdea9bfcbb1f41dad692da073a87554
www.politicopro.com/campaigns.)

As Thom Tillis heads into general-election mode, the Chamber goes in big on House races and the RNC heads to Memphis, here's POLITICO's Morning Score: your daily guide to the 2014 midterms.

DAYS UNTIL THE ELECTION: 181.

Good Wednesday morning and welcome to the abridged version of Campaign Pro's Morning Score. As always, send your tips, thoughts, and suggestions to
mailto:eschultheis@politico.com
eschultheis@politico.com or tweet them to @
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca450433e0ed58f2baece1628911cee3615e4cc7fbdf830fa4
emilyrs . You can also get your Campaign Pro news at @
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca2a33e6c8e745b96dc6bea08ebcc9c5a5e8cb18c25678e1d4
politicopro and @
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca9bb8f908c985d26236292daa8c8bcbdf77829e2f13470dcd
promorningscore .

OTHER NOTABLE PRIMARY RESULTS:

-NC-02: GOP Rep. Renee Ellmers beat back challenger Frank Roche, 58.8 percent to 41.2 percent. On the Democratic side, Clay Aiken took the most votes in the primary against Keith Crisco, but the race has yet to be called. With 100% reporting, Aiken had 40.8 percent to Crisco's 39.5 percent, separated by just 372 votes.

-NC-03: GOP Rep. Walter Jones isn't an establishment figure, but he will make it to the general election, defeatingformer Bush aide Taylor Griffin. With 100% reporting, Jones led Griffin 50.9 percent to 45 percent.

-NC-06: Republicans Phil Berger and Mark Walker are headed to a runoff. With 100% reporting, Berger led the crowded field with 34.3 percent, followed by Walker with 25.2 percent.

-NC-07: Former state Sen. David Rouzer defeated trial attorney Woody White. With 100% reporting, Rouzer lead with 52.7 percent, compared with White's 40.4 percent. Rouzer will be favored to defeat Democrat Jonathan Barfield.

-OH-14: GOP Rep. Dave Joyce fended off a primary challenge from state Rep. Matt Lynch. With 98.2% reporting, Joyce led Lynch 55.1 percent to 44.9 percent.

-NC-12: Democrat Alma Adams won the crowded primary without a runoff. With 100% reporting, Adams had 44 percent in the regularly-scheduled election and 44.2 percent in the special.

-IN-02: Democrat Joe Bock won the primary to face off against GOP Rep. Jackie Walorski, taking 58.1 percent of the Democratic vote.

-OH-08: House Speaker John Boehner easily defeated his primary challengers, taking 68.7 percent of the vote.

TODAY ON CAMPAIGN PRO-

http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca73cbe5af80c70b3d607b21c08225be23c840a92512a299d8
North Carolina Senate primary: Tillis will face Hagan in marquee race

http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8cac220bd42565623b635c4c66ea10ba0f047ebc327986b06f7
Cotton campaign manager cuts ties with super PAC

http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8caf647d69d0fd1d9116aa04510389f76e4be969b68eafb698b
Super PAC hits Jacobs as 'Texas millionaire'

http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca0e0786fbd19c127d44fd9256a7596d8605165d03452d44b0
Exclusive: Mike Lee boosts Sasse in new Nebraska ad

CHAMBER MAKES BIG GENERAL-ELECTION BUYS: As POLITICO's Alex Burns reported Tuesday, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce purchased general-election airtime in nearly a dozen House races (plus the Colorado and Kentucky Senate races). Here are the ads and the candidates they're boosting:

CO-Sen: Cory Gardner (featuring Marco Rubio speaking in Spanish) (
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8cac1f55823cfbfc91d1376bc149657794664a11a5fedd04413
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8cac1f55823cfbfc91d1376bc149657794664a11a5fedd04413 )

KY-Sen: Mitch McConnell (
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca07e6ac07d6c3c2ef561ec12dae47b39862f6d28a6357820a
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca07e6ac07d6c3c2ef561ec12dae47b39862f6d28a6357820a )

CA-07: Doug Ose (
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca8d326cad74499ec3a7913a4dba273d80cd299dc89c370280
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca8d326cad74499ec3a7913a4dba273d80cd299dc89c370280 )

CA-21: David Valadao (
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca016b8943eb1c54010fd0c58e8958d5b7d15d8df6c2ceed13
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca016b8943eb1c54010fd0c58e8958d5b7d15d8df6c2ceed13 )

CO-06: Mike Coffman (
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8caf6adcf32b6141a5fe47993dbac386e09a7ce4ff527abf55c
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8caf6adcf32b6141a5fe47993dbac386e09a7ce4ff527abf55c )

ID-02: Mike Simpson (extending a previous buy) (
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca2ec4b64544e52e7df36113572bee9e89ff0b84566143bd58
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca2ec4b64544e52e7df36113572bee9e89ff0b84566143bd58 )

IL-10: Bob Dold (
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8cad1127ef77bf1355a601431e6c5d4697f3f0da7f409ffac70
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8cad1127ef77bf1355a601431e6c5d4697f3f0da7f409ffac70 )

KY-06: Andy Barr (
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca4e19cc745fa2fe484f504d3bd5426cc32cea7837bcc42d15
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca4e19cc745fa2fe484f504d3bd5426cc32cea7837bcc42d15 )

MA-06: Richard Tisei (
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca5eb84af5551e610d3fd1c74442536fc49e8bfca5784d9618
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca5eb84af5551e610d3fd1c74442536fc49e8bfca5784d9618 )

MI-01: Dan Benishek (
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8caa444ec27c338d218c2e5049cb5d4c43e1c9c7eacc42cafb7
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8caa444ec27c338d218c2e5049cb5d4c43e1c9c7eacc42cafb7 )

MN-08: Stewart Mills (
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca5334459f43b84fa0f586967e88a67e57fa20c4cb0206d064
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8ca5334459f43b84fa0f586967e88a67e57fa20c4cb0206d064 )

NY-19: Chris Gibson (
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8cabb3d4372d76f5c54198a32e52d43d84975ee3250e329c3d9
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=7e4ef9848bddf8cabb3d4372d76f5c54198a32e52d43d84975ee3250e329c3d9 )

NV-03: Joe Heck (
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e666b431be9068337cd6106bda4d3f0cd5772d824e9c05f43e60
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e666b431be9068337cd6106bda4d3f0cd5772d824e9c05f43e60 )

See Alex's original story:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e66621bd516baadd9fbd39b505dc8afee0597495b7f2a4bed16c
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e66621bd516baadd9fbd39b505dc8afee0597495b7f2a4bed16c

RATCLIFFE PREMIERES NEW AD IN TX-04: Former US Attorney John Ratcliffe, who has mounted a formidable primary challenge to incumbent GOP Rep. Ralph Hall, released a new TV ad today three weeks ahead of the May 27 runoff election. "At 91, Ralph Hall has served admirably," Ratcliffe tells the camera in the ad. "But after four decades in Washington, the problems are getting worse, not better." With the largely positive spot, the Ratcliffe campaign continues its strategy of hitting the conservative incumbent on the length of his tenure in office. "I'm John Ratcliffe and I approve this message because it's time for leaders who are focused on the next generation, not the next election." The ad,
which is backed by six figures, will run in every market of the district for the next three weeks.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e6661ce447567252ff70b8173ac4b9cefee01f0d6421e6f3b3f9
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e6661ce447567252ff70b8173ac4b9cefee01f0d6421e6f3b3f9

HUCKABEE CUTS RADIO AD FOR MOONEY: Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee is the star of Citizens United's new radio ad in WV-02, on behalf of Republican Alex Mooney."Alex is a true conservative, he shares our traditional family values," he says in the 30-second ad. "Alex is a strong defender of the 2nd Amendment and he'll fight the radical Obama agenda." The radio buy is for $13,000 and will run from now through next Tuesday's primary. Listen:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e666f1eba14043a32ae67288d7bddd20cd7da3a74299007510d1
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e666f1eba14043a32ae67288d7bddd20cd7da3a74299007510d1

FIRST LOOK - HOUSE MAJORITY PAC BOOSTS RAHALL AGAIN: The pro-Democratic House Majority PAC, which has been one of Rep. Nick Rahall's biggest defenders on the airwaves in West Virginia's 3rd District, is out with a new ad today hitting Republican Evan Jenkins on his out-of-state donors (including the Koch brothers). "You don't need a crystal ball to see who Evan Jenkins will fight for in Congress," the ad says. "The billionaire Koch brothers have spent $1.2 million to elect Jenkins. Now we learn Jenkins collected thousands of dollars from lawyers who fight black lung benefits, and from executives at Massey Energy, where 29 died at Upper Big Branch." The ad, which begins running today, has
$95,000 behind it.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e66612dd8984004304e20ef8a8b18f0395e967a7b325deb1cf0f
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e66612dd8984004304e20ef8a8b18f0395e967a7b325deb1cf0f

DGA BRACKETS CHRISTIE'S MAINE TRIP: The Democratic Governors' Association is marking Chris Christie's trip to Maine today - on behalf of endangered GOP Gov. Paul LePage - with a memo noting that Christie's presence in the state draws attention to LePage's own failures."As if they didn't suffer through it enough on a regular basis, Christie's visit will remind Mainers that LePage is a reckless, divisive ideologue whose antics have made him a national embarrassment," DGA communications director Danny Kanner writes. Christie will attend two fundraisers in Portland this afternoon and evening, with a retail stop and press conference with LePage in between.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e66677a59311dfb8b67512cadf3dc1d59b940542e7ea76ae4f18
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e66677a59311dfb8b67512cadf3dc1d59b940542e7ea76ae4f18

NEW SENATE POLLS FROM PRO-KEYSTONE GROUP: The pro-Keystone group Consumer Energy Alliance released new polling Tuesday in five states with Senate races, conducted by the Democratic firm Hickman Analytics.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e6661fb94f0b1b326717e711f54a239624f23227e52bb231feaa
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e6661fb94f0b1b326717e711f54a239624f23227e52bb231feaa

QUICK HITS ACROSS THE MAP

-MI-Sen: Senate Majority PAC dropped $600,000 on a new ad hitting former GOP secretary of state Terri Lynn Land, saying she'll take women "backwards."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e6669d0b3d0fcfb6c08850a1ce0cb0e36a462c9ca4a2f5401e71
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e6669d0b3d0fcfb6c08850a1ce0cb0e36a462c9ca4a2f5401e71

-NE-Sen: Utah Sen. Mike Lee appears in a new ad supporting GOP candidate Ben Sasse. The Citizens United Political Victory Fund put $150,000 behind the 30-second spot.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e66636971b1f6b274db9b5e6cb174f0a365bd1d8eaf7122ac167
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e66636971b1f6b274db9b5e6cb174f0a365bd1d8eaf7122ac167

-CA-21: Democrat Amanda Renteria released two new biographical TV ads - one in English (
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e66674c565f3ee8ca671304d99346ff03fa60f4c43a224f98842
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e66674c565f3ee8ca671304d99346ff03fa60f4c43a224f98842 ) and one in Spanish (
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e6666cffe623d12432e0380bb415622be2bf3047515e04d0641c
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e6666cffe623d12432e0380bb415622be2bf3047515e04d0641c ) -emphasizing her Central Valley roots.

-FL-Gov: GOP Gov. Rick Scott released a Spanish-language ad hitting Democrat Charlie Crist's tenure as governor.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e66660142bfdae9a2d582534da0b87963f6b22480aa71a81edb9
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e66660142bfdae9a2d582534da0b87963f6b22480aa71a81edb9

-MD-Gov: Democratic state Attorney General Doug Gansler released two new TV ads, which focus on Chesapeake Bay pollution and education reform.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e6669c64c0f9eaeaf8423b21ca8086ac655c5471da7bc963c231
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e6669c64c0f9eaeaf8423b21ca8086ac655c5471da7bc963c231 ,
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e66625c94333815953d503b80fdf21d64c739dea832f5355f8af
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e66625c94333815953d503b80fdf21d64c739dea832f5355f8af

CODA - QUOTE OF THE DAY: "Crist is no gem." - West Virginia Democratic Sen. Jay Rockefeller, referring to former Florida Gov. and current gubernatorial candidate Charlie Crist
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e6664b3bbd799816a9df954d5828a0a498029d66b74d6a6257d2
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b3fb2dbee984e6664b3bbd799816a9df954d5828a0a498029d66b74d6a6257d2

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