TUESDAY PRIMARIES BIG NIGHT FOR PROGRESSIVES
If a progressive war against the Democratic establishment is coming, Tuesday's primaries were the first shots fired. The soul searching within the Democratic Party that, to date, had played out largely on the sidelines was thrust into the spotlight on Tuesday in a series of primaries that amounted to arguably the best night for progressives this year. Their biggest win: Democratic socialist Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez defeating Rep. Joe Crowley, a 10-term incumbent, in New York's 14th Congressional District primary, a stunner that rocked the Democratic world and shook up the party's line of succession. But it wasn't their only victory. Progressive candidates also won two gubernatorial primaries, with 2016 Bernie Sanders ally and former NAACP head Ben Jealous winning in Maryland and Rep. Jared Polis in Colorado.Until now, there had been few signs of a mounting progressive insurgency. Kara Eastman had defeated former Rep. Brad Ashford in a Nebraska Democratic congressional primary, and Democratic socialists had won down-ballot races in Pennsylvania and elsewhere. But progressives declined to challenge the party's sitting senators and in the most important election of 2017 -- the Virginia governor's race -- Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam defeated his more liberal primary opponent, former Rep. Tom Perriello.