Rubio, McCain turn toward general after primary wins

WASHINGTON (AP) - Republican Sens. Marco Rubio, of Florida, and John McCain, of Arizona, turned toward the general election Wednesday with GOP control of the Senate at risk, each facing lesser-known Democratic House members who've sought to link them to Donald Trump.

Rubio and McCain have two tough months of campaigning ahead, but Tuesday they easily dispatched their Republican primary opponents, outcomes that underscored the party establishment's dominance of House and Senate primaries this year despite the nation's turbulent anti-establishment mood and Trump's outsider candidacy.

Not a single senator of either party has lost a primary this year, and in House races only five incumbents have lost, in several cases because they were under indictment or their districts were redrawn.

Rubio and McCain are supporting Trump for president, albeit with obvious reluctance after they were the target of his insults and Rubio ran against Trump for the White House. Unlike other incumbents, Rubio and McCain are extremely well-known with their own brands distinct from Trump's, but the mogul's impact on their candidacies remains unpredictable in states with large numbers of Hispanics, many of whom Trump has alienated with his insulting comments about Mexicans and his hard line on immigration.

McCain will face Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick, his most formidable Democratic opponent in years, while Rubio faces Rep. Patrick Murphy, a former Republican who won his primary against unpredictable liberal firebrand Rep. Alan Grayson.

Tuesday's primary also saw Florida Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, the controversial former head of the Democratic National Committee, easily beat challenger Tim Canova, who was supported by Sen. Bernie Sanders. Twelve-term Democratic Rep. Corrine Brown, one of the first black lawmakers elected to Congress from Florida since Reconstruction, lost her primary in a redrawn district and under indictment over allegedly using a charity as a slush fund.