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Civil rights experts point to long wait times to vote as a sign of growing voter suppression in the U.S. Here's what to expect in the 2020 election. USA TODAY

The 2020 congressional primary electionshave been marked by a number of upsets, where candidates with little name recognition have been propelled into the national spotlight.

Early primaryupsets demonstrated the strength of some progressiveand staunch conservative candidates, who sometimes lacked backing fromtheir respective parties.

In New York,three Democraticcandidatesare poised to replaceor succeedmoderate longtime incumbents in June. In Illinois, a progressivecandidate, backed by the Justice Democrats organization, beat the most conservative Democrat in Congress.In Pittsburgh, a progressive statehouse candidate making her first run for officeoustedan incumbent who is the brother of the city's former mayor.

More: Booker beats progressive challenger, Van Drew race set and other takeaways from Tuesday's primary

Candidates of color, specifically Black candidates, have been on the winning side of several notable upsets. PhysicianCameron Webb, who is Black, beat three white opponents in Virginia's 5th congressional districtprimary, a seat Democrats hope to take back now that the Republicanincumbent lost his own primary. Wesley Hunt and Burgess Owens,Black candidates who won Republican nominations in Texas and Utah, respectively, are both running to represent districts in which Black people are minorities.

Jamaal Bowman, who's running against Rep. Eliot Engel in a Democratic Party primary, pictured at an endorsement event with Zephyr Teachout in Mount Vernon.(Photo: courtesy Bowman campaign)

More Republican women are also winning primaries. According tothe Center for American Women in Politicsat Rutgers, arecord 55 Republican women won House primaries this year, clearing the previous barof 53 set in 2004.That's in part because more Republican women are running 220 filed to run for the House, up from120 who ran in 2018.

Here are some of this primary season's most surprising upsets:

Rep. Scott Tipton, a five-term incumbent from Colorado, lostthe 3rd congressional district's Republican nomination to Lauren Boebert, a restaurant owner and outspoken gun rights activist. Boebert beat Tipton by nearly ten points.

More: John Hickenlooper wins Colorado Democratic primary, will face Sen. Cory Gardner

Trump hadendorsedTipton, tweeting his support for the congressman in December as well asthe night before the election. Boebert's website describes her asa supporter of Trump, praising "his policies to Make America Great Again."

Lauren Boebert waits for returns during a watch party in Grand Junction, Colo., Tuesday, June 30, 2020.(Photo: McKenzie Lange, The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel via AP)

Boebert's restaurant, Shooters Grill in Rifle, Colorado,becamethe subject of national media attention in 2014, for an open carry policy allowing staff to be armed with guns. Her commitment to gun rights also earned her a viral moment in 2019, when she confrontedthen-presidential candidateBeto ORourke at a town hall.I was one of the gun owning Americans who heard (O'Rourke)speak regarding your Hell yes Im going to take your AR-15s and AK-47s,'" she said. "Well, Im here to say, hell no youre not.'

Boebert was also covered by local press as a vocal critic of Democratic Gov. Jared Polis' coronavirus lockdown measures, reopening Shooters Grill in defiance of state orders.

Diane Mitsch Bush, a former state lawmaker, won the district's Democratic nomination and will face Boebertin the fall.

New York's congressional primary in June saw a near sweep of Democratic nominationsby progressives. With several candidates projected to beatmore centrist orestablishmentcompetitors, the electionsmirrored Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's upset against 10-term former Rep. Joe Crowley in 2018.

Jamaal Bowman, a former middle school principal from the Bronx,beat longtime Democratic incumbent Rep. Eliot Engelwith about60% of the vote.

Jamaal Bowman speaks to attendees during his primary-night party in June. The former middle school principal has toppled 16-term U.S. Rep. Eliot Engel in New York's Democratic congressional primary.(Photo: Eduardo Munoz Alvarez, AP)

Engel, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, represented the 16th District for more than 30 years.

The Justice Democrats-backed Bowman began to surge after Engel, asking to speak at an event, was caught on mic saying, If I didn't have a primary, I wouldn't care, according to NBC News. Engel was criticized by primary challengers for not returning to his district for months during the COVID-19 crisis.

Bowman, who was endorsed by Ocasio-Cortez, ran a campaign firmly aligned with the party's progressive flank. He is a proponent of multiple "New Deals," including the Green New Deal an Ocasio-Cortez-spearheadedproposal that outlines a broadplan for tackling climate change as well as plans to reform education and public housing.

"I am excited, I am happy, I cannot wait to get to Congress and cause problems for the people in there that have been maintaining a status quo that has literally been killing our children," Bowman said during his election night watch party.

There is no Republican challenger for the November election.

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Madison Cawthorn, theowner of a real estate investment company, unexpectedly beat Lynda Bennett, a real estate agent and activist, in the race to claim the Republican nomination for Mark Meadows' 11th District seat in North Carolina, which he gave up to become Trump's chief of staff.

Madison Cawthorn(Photo: Courtesy Cawthorn for NC)

Cawthorn, 24,beat Bennett with 65.82% of the vote in the district's runoff election in June. The outcome was considered an upset, given that the Trump and Meadows-endorsed Bennettwon the vote in March (but not by a wide enough margin to avoid a runoff election).Like Boebert, Cawthorn is a supporter of Trump.

Cawthorn said that he was inspired to run for Congress because he was disappointed by how the Republican party handled full control of the White House and Congress in 2017.

It felt like Donald Trump was having to pull teeth from Congress to try to get anything done, and so I want to go over to Washington D.C. to break that status quo, to actually get something done, he said in an interview with The Hill.

More: With second primary underway, Cawthorn addresses voting in-person, by mail options

Cawthorn's website toutshis conservative views on health care, immigration, abortion rightsand gun control. "Im running because our faith, our freedoms and our values are under assault from coastal elites and leftists like Nancy Pelosi and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez," he states.

If elected in November, Cawthorn would become the youngest member in Congress, a title currently held by Ocasio-Cortez. He willface off against Democratic candidateand retired U.S Air Force colonel Moe Davis in the fall.

Iowa Republicans ousted nine-term incumbent Rep. Steve King, nominating state Sen. Randy Feenstra to run for the state's 4th congressional district seat. Feenstra beat King by nearly ten points.

State Sen. Randy Feenstra and Rep. Steve King. Feenstra is challenging King in the GOP primary for the 4th District Congressional seat.(Photo: Robin Opsahl)

The conservative district has long had to contend with King's controversial remarks. While talking about "Dreamers" in a July 2013 interview, King claimed that for every young immigrant who becomes a school valedictorianthere are "100 out there that, they weigh 130 pounds and they've got calves the size of cantaloupes because they're hauling 75 pounds of marijuana across the desert."In an interview with The New York Timeslast year, Kingsuggested that the term "white nationalist" should not be consideredoffensive.

King was removed from his committee seats over the comments he made to the Times. King'scompetitors, including Feenstra, used King's rejectionfrom those committees as proofFeenstra would be more effective as an ally of Trump.

Republicans largely rebuked King through their support of Feenstraduring the primary campaign. Feenstra significantlyoutraised King, andwas endorsed by theU.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Right to Life Committee. Five Republican congressmen even donated to Feenstra's campaign.

Feenstra will compete with J.D. Scholten, who ran uncontested for the Democratic nomination, in the fall. Scholten previously lost to King by a slimmarginin the 2018 general election.

Feenstra's win is likely. Support for a Republican representativein Iowa's 4th congressional district exceeds support fora Democrat by 22%, according to aJune Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll.

Republican Mike Garcia, a former U.S. Navy pilot and defense contractor executive, beat Democrat Christy Smith,a member of the California State Assembly, in the special general electionfor Illinois Rep. Katie Hill's seat in May.

Mike Garcia(Photo: CONTRIBUTED PHOTO)

Garcia's 25th District victoryrepresents the first time a Republican candidate has flipped a Democratic seat in California since 1998. Trump had endorsedGarcia on Twitter, though he originally saidthe election would be "rigged" by California Democrats.

The two candidates will run against each other again in the fall.

Rep. Denver Riggleman, a freshman congressman, lost the Republican nomination for Virginia's fifth district seat to Bob Good, aformer official in the athletics department at Liberty University in June.

Denver Riggleman speaks during a forum at the Lynchburg Regional Business Alliance in Lynchburg, Va., Monday, Oct. 22, 2018.(Photo: Taylor Irby, AP)

Riggleman, a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, was the subject of intense criticism from Republicans in his district after he officiated a gay wedding for two former campaign volunteers last summer.

The Virginia county GOP formally censuredRiggleman last fall, doubtinghis "support for traditional family values, and other conservative principles," according to The Hill.

"He's out of step with the base of the party on life," Good saidin May,in a debate with Riggleman on The Schilling Show, a Charlottesville radio program. "He's out of step on marriage. He's out of step on immigration. He's out of step on health care, on climate, on drug legalization."

Riggleman claimed the election process was riggedby Republican insiders, by makingthe nomination process a convention instead of a primary. Conventions traditionally favor more conservative candidates and have been used for years by Virginia Republicans to block moderate candidates from winning elections.

Good will face off against physician Cameron Webb in the fall's general election.

Ronny Jackson, aTrump-backed former White House physician with no political experience, beatJosh Winegarner, a former cattle industry lobbyist, in the Republican runoff for Texas' 13th District House seat.

Jackson, whowas a White House physician to President Donald Trumpand former PresidentBarack Obama, received endorsements from Trump on Twitter, who called him "strong on Crimes and Borders" and insisted Jackson would "protect your #2A."

Winegarner had the support of outgoing Republican Rep. Mac Thornberry.

Former White House physician Dr. Ronny Jackson arrives at the annual White House Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, April 2, 2018.(Photo: Andrew Harnik, AP)

Jacksonpositioned his relationship with Trump as the biggest asset to his candidacy. Thedistrict has some of the highest rates of support for Trump in the country, giving the president 80% of its vote in 2016, according to the Cook Political Report.

Jackson had afundraising advantage over Winegarner as well, accruing just over $490,000 since April, comparedto Winegarner's almost $300,000 haul duringthat same time period.Jackson won with about 56 percent of the vote, beating Winegarner by more than 11 points.

Jackson, who is a retired U.S. Navy rear admiral, was in the running to be Trump's nominee for Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs in 2018, but ultimatelywithdrew from consideration amid a swarm of allegations of prior misconduct.

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Former colleaguestold Senate investigators that Jackson regularly drank on duty, had an "explosive" temper, and that he abused his powers to prescribe himself prescription drugs for recreational use, among other allegations of misconduct.

Jackson denied all of the allegations leveled against him, calling them "completely false and fabricated." Theinvestigation was opened by the Pentagon inspector general in June 2018 and remains ongoing.

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On election night, Jackson celebrated his win by tweeting, "Jane and I just got off the phone with @realDonaldTrump! Its official! I am honored to be the Republican nominee for #TX13! I promise I will make you proud!"

Jackson will face off against Gus Trujillo, who won the Democratic runoff election.

Mondaire Jones, a lawyer from Rockland County, wonthe nomination forlong-time incumbent Rep. Nita Loweys 17th District seat in New York. The Associated Press did not call the race until about three weeks after it ended, though the nomination was always considered Jones', who had picked up more than double the votesof any other candidate by election night.

Mondaire Jones, Democratic candidate for Congress in the 17th C.D., speaks during a rally honoring lives lost to police violence in front of the Westchester County Courthouse in White Plains July 15, 2020. The rally was sponsored by the Westchester Coalition for Police Reform.(Photo: Seth Harrison/The Journal News)

His closest competitor, former federal prosecutor Adam Schleifer, hadfour times Jones budget.

Jones received endorsements from progressive members of Congress such as Ocasio-Cortez, Massachusetts Rep. Ayanna Pressley, and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.

Jones' campaign did not accept corporate PAC donations, and signed the No Fossil Fuel Money Pledge.He ran on a platform that advocated for labor rights and student debt relief, as well as Medicare for All and paid sick leave as responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. Like Bowman, he is also a proponent ofthe Green New Deal.

In an interview with NPR, Jones said that it was his commitment to progressive policies that set him apart during the primary election."I am the only candidate in a crowded Democratic primary who supports the only policy that would literally ensure everyone has health care in this country and that is Medicare for All," he said.

In the fall, Jones will face Maureen McArdle Schulman, who won the district's Republican nomination.

Marie Newman, a former management consultant and founder of an anti-bullying non-profit, narrowly beat incumbent Rep. Dan Lipinksi in the Democratic race for Illinois' third district seat in March.

Lipinski's father, WilliamLipinski, held the seat for more than twodecades before his son succeeded him. Newman's win represents the first time the seat will be out of the Lipinski family since 1983.

Marie Newman smiles as she campaigns in the Archer Heights neighborhood of Chicago.(Photo: Charles Rex Arbogast, AP Images)

Lipinskiisnotoriously one of the last few conservative Democrats in Congress. His opposition to abortion rights, the DREAM Act, and the Affordable Care Act all alienated him from his party. In contrast, Newman was backed by progressive groups such as Justice Democrats, the political action committee that supportedOcasio-Cortez in 2018.

Newman will compete withCounty Board Member Mike Fricilone, who won the Republican nomination, in the fall.

Former Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who was previously Alabama's U.S. Senator for 20 years, lost his runoff bid to former football coach Tommy Tuberville.

Tuberville considers himself a Christian conservative,and ran a campaign that was pro-life and pro-gun rights. He told the Montgomery Advertiser in March that he supported Trumps efforts to build a border wall with Mexico, and wanted to reduce the national debt through cuts to social programs, with exceptions for Social Security, Medicare, andMedicaid.

The race to see who would compete with Sen.Doug Jones, who flipped the traditionally Republican seat in 2018, also highlighted the rift between Trump and Sessions.

Former college football coach Tommy Tuberville defeated former Senator and Attorney General Jeff Sessions in the Alabama Republican Senate primary. Tuberville goes on to challenge Democratic Senator Doug Jones. (July 15) AP Domestic

In the early days of Trump's presidency and during his campaign Sessions was a prominent ally. Sessions was the first U.S. Senator to endorse Trump's campaign, providing it cruciallegitimacy before the 2016 Super Tuesday elections. Sessions publicly supported Trump as early as 2015, sporting a Make America Great Again hat at a Trump rally in August2015 and praising Trump's border wall plans.

More: Illinois GOP congressman criticizes Trump for lack of 'loyalty' to former Attorney General Sessions

Sessions' goodwill with Trump expired when herecused himselffrom the Russia investigation, whichled to Robert Mueller'sappointmentas special counsel and anearlytwo-year investigation that shadowed Trump's early years in office. Trump was not charged, and fired Sessions in 2018.

In a television interview last summer, TrumpcalledSessions' appointment as attorney general the "biggest mistake" of his presidency.

Although Trump regularly endorses GOP candidatesusually on Twitter he paid special attention to the race between Sessions and Tuberville,explicitlytyinghis endorsement of Tuberville to Sessions' recusal.

Tuberville will face off against Jones in November.

Contributing: William Cummings, Brian Lyman, Stephen Gruber-Miller, and Nick Coltrain

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