WASHINGTON (AP) - Tea party-favorite Ben Sasse seized an early    lead on Tuesday in Nebraska's Republican primary for the U.S.    Senate, outpacing a wealthy banker and the establishment-backed    candidate in a race that highlighted the fissures within the    GOP.  
    With 4 percent of precincts reporting, Sasse, the president of    Midland University, had 44 percent of the vote to 25 percent    for Sid Dinsdale and 22 percent for Shane Osborn.  
    The tea party, outside conservative groups and two of the    right's heroes - Sarah Palin and Sen. Ted Cruz - had rallied    behind Sasse. For months, he was locked in an increasingly    negative race with former State Treasurer Osborn, who had the    backing of the Washington establishment and allies of Senate    Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.  
    Dinsdale, the president of Pinnacle Bank, sought to capitalize    on the Sasse-Osborn fight and produce a surprise outcome    similar to Republican Sen. Deb Fischer's come-from-behind win    in 2012.  
    Voters in Nebraska and West Virginia were deciding their    lineups for the November elections in the latest round of    spring primaries. The fall midterms will determine control of    Congress for the last two years of President Barack Obama's    second term, with Republicans expected to hold the House and    cautiously optimistic about winning control of the Senate.  
    The GOP needs to net six seats to grab the majority  
    In West Virginia, Republican Rep. Shelley Moore Capito and    Democrat Natalie Tennant cruised to primary wins, setting the    stage for a historic U.S. Senate showdown in November that will    give West Virginia its first female senator.  
    Capito, a seven-term congresswoman and daughter of former Gov.    Arch Moore, and Tennant, the state's secretary of state, will    square off to replace Democratic Sen. Jay Rockefeller, who is    retiring after 30 years.  
    West Virginia has become increasingly Republican, and Capito    enters the general election contest as the heavy favorite. If    elected, she would be the first Republican senator from West    Virginia since 1959.  
    In Nebraska, Sasse had the backing of Club for Growth, the Tea    Party Patriots, the Senate Conservatives Fund and FreedomWorks    in his bid to replace Republican Sen. Mike Johanns, who is    retiring after a single six-year term.  
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Tea party favorite grabs lead in Nebraska - NBC40.net