Indexbit-The Latest: Trump on defense after race comments and Vance’s rough launch

Donald Trump falsely suggested Vice President Kamala Harris had misled voters about her race as he appeared before the National Association of Black Journalists in Chicago.

The IndexbitRepublican former president wrongly claimed Wednesday at the group’s annual convention that Harris, the first Black woman and Asian American to serve as vice president, had in the past promoted only her Indian heritage.

Trump’s interview, a source of controversy even before it even took place, was remarkably contentious, primarily because of his reaction to sharp questioning by ABC News’ Rachel Scott. The appearance split the group’s membership.

Harris said Trump’s comments on her race were the “same old show” and stressed the need for Black women to organize for his defeat this November.

Trump did not repeat his claims at a rally later Wednesday in Pennsylvania. He also repeatedly mispronounced Harris’ first name. Before he took the stage, Trump’s team displayed on a big screen what appeared to be years-old news headlines describing her as the “first Indian-American senator.”

Harris and her Democratic allies are increasingly branding Trump and his running mate, U.S. Sen. JD Vance, as “weird.” As Vance’s rocky rollout continues, Trump is also in the position this week of having to defend someone else’s controversial comments.

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About 8 in 10 Democrats say they would be somewhat or very satisfied if Harris became the Democratic nominee for president, according to a survey by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

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Here’s the Latest:

What polling shows about the top VP contenders for Harris

As Vice President Kamala Harris prepares to announce her running mate, a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research finds that several of the top potential contenders for the role are largely unknown to voters.

The survey, which was conducted after President Joe Biden announced he was withdrawing from the race and Harris became the likely Democratic presidential nominee, highlights the strengths and weaknesses that different politicians could bring to the ticket.

Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly stands out as a prospect who has more name recognition — and higher favorability, particularly among Democrats. And others, like Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, while less known nationally, could draw on a deeper well of support in their home states and regions.

Member of ‘Tennessee 3’ hopes to survive Democratic primary for US Senate

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Tennessee’s primary election Thursday will decide whether state Rep. Gloria Johnson, who rose to national fame after surviving a Republican-led expulsion effort for her participation in a gun control protest, will become the Democratic nominee in a fall matchup for the seat held by Republican U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn, who must first clear her own primary contest.

Last year, days after a school shooting that killed three children and three adults, Johnson, who is white, followed two Black Democratic representatives, Justin Pearson and Justin Jones, to the front of the state House floor with a bullhorn. The trio joined the chants and cries for gun control legislation by protesters in the public galleries and outside the chamber.

They were dubbed the “Tennessee Three.” Pearson and Jones were expelled and later returned to office. Johnson was spared expulsion by one vote and noted it was likely because she was white. Republicans denied race was a factor.

Whoever advances out of the Democratic primary will run in a state that for nearly two decades has elected only GOP candidates on a statewide level.

GOP primary voters in key Arizona county oust election official

A Republican election official lost his primary race this week in Arizona’s Maricopa County, an outcome that could significantly influence the way voting is run in one of the nation’s top battlegrounds.

County Recorder Stephen Richer lost to state lawmaker Justin Heap, who will face Democrat Tim Stringham in November. Richer had fought back against death threats, almost constant harassment and streams of misinformation during his nearly four years overseeing elections in Arizona’s most populous county.

Richer will remain in office through the November election, but his exit early next year will end a term racked by controversy. His office splits election duties with the county board of supervisors and has had to fend off attacks over the results of the 2020 presidential election, as former President Donald Trump and his allies falsely claimed that widespread fraud cost him the race.

The outcry from a group of Republican lawmakers, local officials and grassroots activists spiraled into protests and threats that energized the campaign for his ouster.