Iowa Primary: Gubernatorial, Senate Races Take Center Stage In Tuesday's Vote

Six Republicans are vying for the chance to replace Rep. Tom Latham (R-Iowa), battling at the polls in a primary election on Tuesday. A competitive senate race in the Hawkeye State is also drawing voters to the polls.

Iowa is one of eight states with primary elections on June 3.

The AP reports on Iowa's Senate primary:

In Iowa, Republican hopeful Joni Ernst was leading in a Des Moines Register poll after gaining national notoriety from an ad in which she cites her experience on a farm and vows to "make 'em squeal' in Washington if elected. The poll showed her with 36 percentage points — 1 point higher than the threshold for winning the nomination outright and avoiding a state convention later this year.

Supporting her in a last-minute swing around the state was Mitt Romney, the GOP's 2012 presidential nominee. Romney did not endorse Cochran in Mississippi, which voted for former Sen. Rick Santorum in that year's Republican presidential primaries. Santorum endorsed McDaniel in his bid to unseat Cochran.

Read more on all of Tuesday's primaries here.