NASHVILLE — Tennessee voters backed Senator Lamar Alexander against a Tea Party challenge and turned down an aggressive bid by conservatives and business interests to oust three members of the State Supreme Court in primaries on Thursday.
Mr. Alexander’s victory in the Republican primary was another win for establishment Republicans against Tea Party challengers. And the decision to retain the justices was also a defeat for conservatives who hoped to gain a majority on Tennessee’s highest court.
With 99 percent of the vote counted, Mr. Alexander led six other candidates with 50 percent of the vote, The Associated Press said.
In securing a win, Mr. Alexander thwarted the final attempt by Tea Party supporters to oust a Republican senator this year after challenges in Kansas, Kentucky, Mississippi and South Carolina faltered. The year has proved a marked contrast from 2010 and 2012, when Tea Party candidates toppled Senators Robert F. Bennett of Utah and Richard G. Lugar of Indiana, both Republicans.
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