Five more states have nominated party candidates for November’s mid term elections.  

Republicans, Democrats, Independents and Tea Partiers were all in serious contention in last night’s primaries. Whether or not you live in one of the states that held a primary last night, the elections may still impact you.  Smart politicians adapt quickly; the lessons learned tonight, they will likely carry with them to November's election. Moreover, the issues that affected those statewide elections may also be playing out in your state as well.

The results are in for the Sunshine State's most expensive and, arguably, nastiest primary in history.  

A number of economic indicators are due out this week, including existing and new home sales, and 2nd quarter GDP figures — all are expected to plummet. Charlie Herman, economics editor for The Takeaway and WNYC Radio, is describing this as a "slowdown" this week: "Right now, we're in the slow days of summer. The president is on vacation and Congress is in recess," he says.

On Tuesday, Florida's voters head to the polls to vote in primaries for U.S. Senate and governor. Sergio Bustos, state politics editor at The Miami Herald, and Kate Zernike, reporter for our partner The New York Times, describe how the races have been shaping up and what we can expect on Tuesday. Plus, we'll find out what the Sunshine State can tell us about the national political mood.

Whether they are families of September 11 victims or just normal New Yorkers, a recent poll showed that the city is split over Park 51, the Islamic cultural center and mosque proposed a few blocks from Ground Zero, in lower Manhattan. Two-thirds of New Yorkers are against it, and less than one-third in favor. Mid-term election candidates have made the center an election issue, with politicians defending it as a First Amendment right or demanding that the city prevent the construction by taking over the site via "eminent domain." With all the controversy, emotions are running high. 

If you could decide whether or not the center were built at that location, how would you make your decision?

The midterm elections are fast-approaching and many of the races are shaping up to be neck-and-neck. The Republicans have to gain 39 seats in the House and ten in the Senate in order to win majorities in both. But with public turnout for midterms usually very low, how much can these elections (or the campaigns leading up to them) help us predict the country's political future?

Voters in Colorado and Connecticut head to the polls today to vote in primary elections. In Colorado, incumbent Democratic Senator Michael Bennet, who was endorsed by President Obama, is facing a surprisingly hard primary battle. A loss could bring insight into how voters feel about Washington and President Obama. Kirk Johnson, Denver bureau chief for The New York Times, joins us with the latest from the Centennial State.

It's been 11 years and the nation's black farmers have still not received the nearly $1.25 billion settlement they were promised by the Agriculture Department. The Senate was expected to approve the measure before the start of recess last Thursday, but Republicans put the brakes on the vote after citing concerns that Democrats had not outlined a plan to pay for the settlement.

The Senate still has a few things to do before it goes on August recess. From the "spill bill" to Elena Kagan, Takeaway Washington correspondent, Todd Zwillich has the latest from Capitol Hill.

This afternoon a House ethics panel will lay out the charges against Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.), who, at 80 years old, is one of the longest-serving members of Congress. Rep. Rangel has represented Harlem since 1970, when he ousted the legendary Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. Both men had long, storied careers representing what may be the country’s most famous African-American neighborhood, home to Malcolm X, Marcus Garvey, Langston Hughes, and many others. But a lot has changed in Harlem since Powell, Jr. was elected in 1945. We look back at the history of Harlem politics and the power of the "Gang of Four."

Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) may face the biggest fight of his long political career when he faces a public ethics hearing on Capitol Hill later this afternoon. At the heart of the hearing are allegations that Rangel underreported his rental income on a villa in the Domincan Republic, held multiple rent-stabilized apartments in New York City, and misused congressional stationery to solicit private donations for a City College center that bore his name.

There's growing concern about the national debt: currently a gulp-inducing $13 trillion... and counting. President Obama's National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform is tasked with coming up with proposals to begin solving the problem later this year. We speak with Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.), ranking member on the Senate Budget Committee, and a member of the bipartisan deficit-reduction commission.

It may seem like a distant memory, but back in 2008, the story of the Democratic presidential primary was the rise of a relative newcomer to Washington taking on the party establishment with grassroots organizing. It was a winning strategy for then-candidate Barack Obama in Colorado, where he earned more than two-thirds of the primary votes and defeated Hillary Clinton. 

In Colorado’s Democratic Senate primary this year, there’s another candidate campaigning as an outsider, but the establishment narrative is flipped. This time, the political newcomer is the incumbent, and the challenger is a mainstay of Colorado politics.

Just months ago, Senator Scott Brown (R-Mass.) rode to office in a pickup truck powered by Tea Party support for his promise to be the 41st vote against health care reform. Now he's siding with Democrats on financial reform, the president's next big legislative priority. He has extracted concessions for his position, but that's not the reason he's crossing party lines. He's part of a rare breed these days: moderate Northeast Republicans. "41" is no longer the most important number for Scott Brown; it's "2012," when he faces re-election.

While lawmakers are adjourned this week for the July 4th recess, many of the country's millions of unemployed workers await their return for an expected vote on an extension of unemployment insurance benefits. 

Yesterday the Senate defeated a jobs bill, which included $4.6 billion to pay a settlement to American black farmers. The bill was crucial to the farmers, who won a class-action lawsuit against the Department of Agriculture charging years of discriminatory loan practices. 

We've been monitoring the story all year, and bring back the president of the Black Farmers and Agriculturalists Association, Gary Grant, for his response. "Ordinary people never get anything in Washington," he says, "We won't give up. It will not be put to rest - that's for sure."

Tony Hayward, the much-criticized CEO of BP, faced angry lawmakers on Capital Hill yesterday for the first time since the Deepwater Horizon explosion. Hayward stuck closely to his prepared statements, ducking many of the questions posed to him, but in the course of the questioning, we did learn some important things about the oil spill and the political fallout it's causing.

Takeaway Washington correspondent, Todd Zwillich, attended the hearings and shares his impressions.

Last night, voters decided the party candidates in four closely watched states: Arkansas, California, Nevada, and South Carolina and seven others. But for many candidates the election battle is only just beginning. Takeaway Washington correspondent Todd Zwillich looks at how the primary winners will fare in November's ballot. Sharron Angle's win in Nevada is both a victory for the Tea Party and for Harry Reid, who has been preparing to face-off against the conservative candidate.

Today's primaries may feel local, but they are getting a national push. Sarah Palin visited South Carolina on behalf of gubernatorial candidate, Nikki Haley. Palin's appearance catapulted the candidate to the head of the polls. Nevada's Senate primary is also a Tea Party election, according to Takeaway Washington correspondent, Todd Zwillich. There, Tea Party candidate Sharron Angle seems positioned to win the primary, which will pit her against Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. This bodes well for Reid as Tea Party candidates have a hard time winning national elections.

Primary races are scheduled in eleven states today. We are looking at two elections with national implications: Arkansas, where the power of organized labor is at play, and Nevada, where Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is hoping a specific GOP pick will enable him to keep his seat. 

In Arkansas, Democratic Senator Blanche Lincoln is facing a run-off against Lt. Gov. Bill Halter. Organized labor groups, both local and national, have thrown their weight behind Halter, saying Lincoln betrayed them by not supporting a public option in health care reform and by voting for NAFTA as a U.S. Representative, in 1993. National labor groups have pumped millions of dollars into the race - leading some analysts to suggest that Arkansas' primary contest has been hijacked by national interests.