Progressive challenger outs Dem party royalty in Missouri primary

Congressman William Lacy Clay held Missouri's 1st district for nearly 20 years after inheriting it from his father, Bill Clay, who had held it for 32 years. Last night he was defeated in the Democratic Party's primary by a progressive challenger, Cori Bush, who proceeds to a virtually assured victory in November's general election. Ryan Grim:

Bush's win is monumental in a number of ways. Unlike Bowman, she did not have the luxury of an opponent who fled his district and told a hot mic that he only wanted to speak at a Black Lives Matter rally because he had a primary to worry about. … Clay, however, is not old (he just turned 64, a decade younger than Engel), white, or lazy. Clay did not remotely take Bush for granted, launching a full-scale negative campaign to try to take her down, and has been focused on her as a threat since her loss to him in 2018. He is a fixture of the community, and he and his father, Bill Clay Sr., a civil rights activist and co-founder of the Congressional Black Caucus, have continuously held the seat since the 1960s.