Amish Shah wins Democratic congressional primary in Arizona, a blow to the party establishment - AP News

What the report says

Associated Press reported that Amish Shah won the Democratic primary Wednesday for Arizona’s 1st Congressional District, an open and closely watched U.S. House seat. Shah, an emergency physician, defeated a field that included Marlene Galán-Woods, a former Phoenix television journalist and former Republican who had been backed by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

The result is a setback for the DCCC, which chose to support Galán-Woods even though AP described her and Shah as broadly similar moderates rather than candidates representing opposing wings of the party. Shah framed the outcome as a grassroots win and said he now needs to earn support across the district. DCCC Chair Rep. Suzan DelBene later praised Shah while criticizing Republican nominee Jay Feely, but AP said she did not address the committee’s earlier endorsement decision.

Shah will face Feely, a former NFL kicker endorsed by President Donald Trump, in the general election. AP noted an unusual connection between the two: both were with the New York Jets during the 2008 and 2009 seasons, when Shah worked on the sideline as an airway management physician and Feely was the team’s kicker. Feely won the Republican primary over former state lawmaker Joseph Chaplik.

The race is expected to be competitive and potentially important to control of the House. The district includes northeast Phoenix, Scottsdale, Fountain Hills and Paradise Valley, has a Republican registration edge, and has moved toward the political center in recent years. The seat opened after Republican Rep. David Schweikert ran for governor and lost in the GOP primary.