Primary elections live updates: Latest on South Carolina, Maine, Nevada races

But the message that Democrats are the party most capable of revitalizing the economy is a tough sell as inflation continues to rise under their watch. The Bureau of Labor Statistics announced Friday that inflation jumped a historic 8.6 percent last month from a year earlier as gas prices reached nearly $5 a gallon nationwide, a trend that most Americans expect will worsen.

Midterm elections also historically serve as a referendum on whichever party occupies the White House, with the margin of loss loosely projected by a president’s approval rating.

“They suck. Midterms suck,” Rep. Steven Horsford (D-Nev.) said bluntly ahead of Tuesday’s Nevada primary.