Jamaica-linked Wes Moore, Yvette Clarke win primary races to contest November polls in US

On a night that saw several incumbent United States (US) congressional representatives lose their primary elections to newcomers, two elected officials with Jamaican heritage won their respective races to move on to contest the November 2026 general elections.

Wes Moore, who is seeking a second term as governor of Maryland, easily won his primary while congresswoman Yvette Clarke beat back a challenge to win her primary for her Brooklyn District 9 congressional seat.

In the November election, Moore will face off against republican candidate Dan Cox who defeated his challenger to set up a contest against the incumbent governor.

Moore easily won the Democratic primary, receiving 237,768 votes to his opponent’s 31,850.

In the Republican primary, Cox received 116,303 votes to his opponent’s 6,307 votes. Cox had two challengers for the Republican nomination.

Moore, whose grandparents are Jamaicans, is the first African American ever elected governor of Maryland. He is only the third African American to be elected governor of a US state.

His win four years ago put the governorship back in the hands of the Democratic party after two terms of Republican rule.

He Is a businessman, author, philanthropist, veteran and Rhodes scholar.

Moore has made it clear that he was not about making history in his governance but would try to end child poverty in the state.

As he seeks another four years as governor, Moore has been pointing to several achievements of his administration, a platform on which he based his re-election campaign.

In a social media post following his primary win, Moore thanked the people of Maryland and told them that their votes made it happen.

“The work doesn’t stop now. Let’s keep this momentum going,” he said.

Moore is regularly mentioned by Democrats as a potential candidate for the 2028 presidential election.

His frequent media appearances and travel schedule have fueled the belief that he will launch a presidential campaign after the November 2026 mid-term polls.

Over in Brooklyn, Clarke won her primary with 66.6 per cent of the votes cast. She polled 29,670 votes to her main opponent’s 6,686.

Clarkee, whose parents are also Jamaicans, has served in the US House of Representatives since 2007 and is seeking another two-year term which she is expected to secure in the November 2026 general elections.

She currently serves as chair of the Congressional Black Caucus.

Her district is made up largely of Caribbean-American residents.

editorial@gleanerjm.com