Delaware Senator Faces Challenge From Progressive Rival

The potential for another takedown of a longtime Democratic incumbent by a progressive challenger looms in Delaware, where voters on Thursday will choose between a three-term U.S. Senator and a community activist who has never held office.

Senator Tom Carper, a 71-year-old white man, is being challenged by Kerri Evelyn Harris, 38, who would be the first black woman and openly gay person elected by the state's voters if she were to win office in the Nov. 6 general election.

Carper has won a dozen statewide elections over his 40-year career and has faced only token opposition in Senate nominating contests in the past.

The race is the latest test of whether voters dissatisfied with Democratic leadership will push out an incumbent in favor of a younger, more diverse candidate they see as a potentially more robust opposition to Republican President Donald Trump.

It follows June's shock win by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez over high-ranking Representative Joe Crowley in a New York City congressional district and Tuesday's upset by Boston city councilwoman Ayanna Pressley over longtime incumbent U.S. Representative Michael Capuano.

The Delaware contest differs from those races, however, in that it is a statewide race in a place that tends to elect moderates to federal office. The congressional districts that will likely soon be represented by Ocasio-Cortez and by Pressley are more liberal than the country as a whole. Pressley is running unopposed.

Political analysts see Carper, a moderate, as a safe win for Democrats in November. A primary victory by Harris on Thursday would likely make the general election race more competitive.

Ocasio-Cortez has held rallies for Harris, a 38-year-old Air Force veteran who has been far outspent. Her campaign's expenditures total a mere $69,000, while Carper has spent $3.35 million, according to the U.S. Federal Elections Commission database. Ocasio-Cortez was also heavily outspent.

Polling in the Senate race has been limited, with one poll from July showing Carper ahead by more than 30 points.

Three Republicans are running in Thursday's primary in a state whose last Republican senator, William Roth, lost a 2000 reelection bid to Carper.

Delaware's one notable recent win by an insurgent in a nominating contest was Christine O'Donnell, who won a surprise Republican primary in 2010 over longtime Congressman Mike Castle. She went on to lose in the November election by nearly 17 points.