Here’s who you can vote for in the Aug. 9 primary. Campaigns are working to turn out the vote.

In an attempt to reach voters who have been on vacation or distracted by getting their children to summer camp, politicians have been scrambling to spread the word about multiple primaries being held on Tuesday.

Statewide contests are being held for some of the most important positions in Connecticut, as well as local races in some towns. Democrats will choose candidates for treasurer and secretary of the state, while Republicans will pick a secretary of the state candidate and a challenger to longtime incumbent U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal.

But the primaries, slated for a hot day in early August, are often plagued by low voter turnout. The campaigns are working to turn out the vote on a ballot ranging from marquee races to legislative contests to even local probate judges.

The biggest turnout since the August primaries began was 43% in 2006 when a young Democrat named Ned Lamont pulled an upset against then-U.S. Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman. The 43% was huge — far beyond the 25% turnout in 2010 when Lamont lost the primary for governor to Dannel P. Malloy.

Lamont is not a fan of the mid-summer clashes and would like to see the date changed.

“I’ve tried to get more people to vote,’' Lamont told the Courant in an interview. “Let’s face it. On a hot day in August, you get not the broadest cross-section of folks able to vote. They’re much more likely to vote in June or September. It seems to work pretty well in about 40 other states. ... The two parties can figure that one out. It’s got to be bipartisan. ... I think there are some interesting primaries, and I think we may get surprised by a few more people voting than we expected.’'

Here are some of the key contests:

U.S. Senate for Republicans

The Republican primary for Senate has become an increasingly bitter three-way battle between former House GOP leader Themis Klarides, Greenwich fundraiser Leora Levy, and Fairfield immigration lawyer Peter Lumaj.

The race was upended with former President Donald Trump’s endorsement of Levy, which generated major momentum for Levy at a time when she was expected to split the conservative vote with Lumaj.

Now, the big question is how much support Trump has among Republicans in Connecticut — a state where Trump lost to Democrat Joe Biden in the general election by 20 percentage points.

“It’s going to be a fascinating Tuesday,’' Lamont said. “The Trump endorsement made a difference last Tuesday. Look at Arizona. In a small-turnout primary, that’s where the Trump vote could make a big difference.’'

The race has gotten bitter as Levy has repeatedly blasted Klarides in television commercials as “not one of us,’' accusing her of being a “Hartford swamp creature’' and “the next Liz Cheney,” a deep insult in conservative Republican circles.

Levy has also accused Lumaj of working with Klarides against her. In a video posted on Twitter, Levy was captured as she shouted “three people, two campaigns’' as she interrupted a speech by Lumaj. A Levy supporter then shouted, “Get out of the race!’' as Lumaj continued speaking.

Since Klarides won nearly 60% of the delegates at the party convention, her supporters are counting on Levy and Lumaj to split the conservative vote and allow her to win the primary.

Klarides’ supporters say that the hard-core conservatism of Levy and Lumaj as pro-gun, pro-life, pro-Trump Republicans might be popular in Alabama, but not in Connecticut. They add that Levy has burned bridges among Republicans who had been seeking party unity, and they are not sure about her role in the party in the future.

State Republican chairman Ben Proto publicly implored the candidates to avoid hammering each other and instead hurl their political blows at U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a powerhouse Democrat who is preparing for the general election. But that has not happened.

“If we’re going to win in November, we need to be united,’' Proto said. “It’s important to remember that it’s about unity. It’s not about purity.’'

A recent memo sent by Levy’s campaign manager, Christopher Velazco, noted that Levy has the support of a wide variety of conservative groups that include the pro-gun Connecticut Citizens Defense League, Take Back Connecticut, and Parent’s Choice, among others.

“During that debate, Klarides was exposed as little more than another Blumenthal, just with an R next to her name, and she clearly did not have the stomach to face the reality of her record again,’' Velazco wrote. “It’s clear Klarides should be running in a Democrat primary against Blumenthal, and not as a Republican.’'

Both Klarides and a Super PAC supporting her have blasted Levy for contributing money in 1998 to Blumenthal’s re-election campaign for state attorney general. Levy says her husband made the $100 contribution, but both their names are listed on public documents.

“Name-calling and negativity only comes from somebody who is behind and is desperate and is trying to throw things out and hopes that something sticks,’' Klarides said in an interview. “I’m the only candidate that has a chance to beat Dick Blumenthal, and that should be the only question people ask when they go to vote on Tuesday. ... I would hope that on August 10 that everybody is together in their goal to defeat the man who is the wingman for Joe Biden.’'

The most recent survey by nationally known pollster John McLaughlin shows Blumenthal ahead of Klarides by 11 points and Levy by 12 points. But the poll also showed 47% said they want “someone else’' besides Blumenthal in November. McLaughlin conducted the latest poll for a wealthy California winery owner who supports national Republicans, but he also works for Levy and Republican gubernatorial candidate Bob Stefanowski.

“Blumenthal is vulnerable,’' McLaughlin told the Courant. “He knows Joe Biden has a significant disapproval rating.’'

Democrats for treasurer

With the incumbent treasurer, Shawn Wooden, not seeking reelection, three Democrats are now battling for the position that is often seen as the second most powerful in the state after the governor.

Former gubernatorial candidate and hedge fund manager Dita Bhargava of Greenwich is making her second run for the office following a loss in the August 2018 primary to Wooden. As a former vice chairwoman of the state Democratic Party, Bhargava is running against another former party vice chairman, attorney Erick A. Russell of New Haven, and Karen Dubois-Walton, a Yale graduate who serves as New Haven’s public housing authority leader and chairwoman of the state board of education.

All three candidates are running commercials to spread the word — with Bhargava generating attention for showing a series of bare-shouldered women who support abortion rights. A second commercial shows her holding a picture of her son, Alec Pelletier, who died of an overdose on his 26th birthday as she criticizes Stamford-based Purdue Pharma, which filed for bankruptcy in 2019 following a national controversy over its sale of the painkiller OxyContin.

Russell, seen as a 33-year-old rising star in the Democratic Party, won the party’s convention nod with 47% of the delegates in May as the other candidates declined to force a second round of voting. Dubois-Walton has deep support in her hometown of New Haven, including the three most recent mayors and multiple members of the legislative delegation.

More information about each candidate is at bit.ly/3Q7d6tg.

Democrats for Secretary of the State

With the retirement of Secretary of the State Denise Merrill after 12 years, more than 10 candidates stepped forward to fill the open seat as the state’s top elections official.

The clash between state Rep. Stephanie Thomas of Norwalk and New Haven health director Maritza Bond has become increasingly bitter as Bond has been running negative television commercials on a steady basis.

Thomas won the party’s convention endorsement in a five-person race and has rolled up more than 125 endorsements that include Merrill and more than 40 state legislators. Bond is relying on the support of a wide array of unions for door-knocking and phone-banking, including the state AFL-CIO, the United Auto Workers Region 9 A, the Connecticut Employees Union Independent, and others that she says are the backbone of the Democratic Party. She refers to herself as “Maritza Bond, the agent for Connecticut.’'

Republicans for Secretary of the State

The convention-endorsed candidate, Dominic Rapini, is battling against state Rep. Terrie E. Wood of Darien, a legislator who has won seven elections and has the most experience at the state Capitol of any candidate running to be the top elections official.

A longtime sales executive for Apple and local football coach, Rapini notes that he has coached more than 1,000 young players in the Pop Warner program in New Haven County over the past three decades. He taped a video with former GOP party Chairwoman Sue Hatfield, a former athlete who was carrying a football in front of a scoreboard as she endorsed Rapini.

Wood has been endorsed by House Republican leader Vincent Candelora of North Branford, Bolton First Selectman Pam Sawyer, and Pauline Kezer, the last Republican who held the secretary of the state’s office in the early 1990s before losing a primary for governor against John G. Rowland in 1994. Democrats have dominated the constitutional office for decades, but Kezer broke the logjam as the only Republican over the past 60 years.

Political activist Brock Weber abruptly dropped out of the race, and the State Elections Enforcement Commission voted unanimously to launch an investigation into his campaign for “potential fraudulent contributions,’' the commission said.

More information about each party’s candidates for secretary of the state is here: bit.ly/3BKq1gg.

Simsbury

The retirement of state Rep. John Hampton has opened up the seat and prompted a Democratic primary for the state House of Representatives for the first time in Simsbury in decades.

Former first selectman Eric Wellman is battling against attorney Melissa E. Osborne, a veteran campaigner who has gained name recognition while losing against Republican Sen. Kevin Witkos in 2014, 2018, and 2020. Wellman captured the nomination of the Simsbury town committee, but Osborne gathered enough petition signatures to force the primary.

In a small town with only Democrats participating, as few as 1,500 votes could win the race, insiders said.

Wellman, 39, captured the local party’s nomination and has gathered endorsements from U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes and the union-backed Working Families Party. Osborne, 54, has already captured key endorsements from Hampton and two of the most popular Simsbury first selectmen over the past 30 years — Mary Glassman and Anita Mielert.

Both candidates say a key issue is supporting abortion access after the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision to overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling and allow states to make their own regulations regarding abortion.

More on that race is here: bit.ly/3StGLyh.

West Haven

Rep. Trenee McGee, an African American freshman legislator who has served less than one year in Hartford, is being challenged by Joe Miller, a 24-year-old abortion rights advocate, in a contest that has focused on abortion. Miller said he decided to challenge McGee after she made an impassioned speech on the floor of the state House of Representatives against an abortion bill that was later signed into law by Lamont.

McGee said that abortion has been “destructive to my community” in urban neighborhoods, and she wanted to “speak the fearless truth” about too many abortions in minority communities.

The intra-party clash is the most interesting legislative contest of the primary season, said state Republican chairman Ben Proto.

“She gave one of the most passionate, articulate floor speeches that a freshman has ever given, and they’re challenging her simply because she’s prolife. No other reason,’' Proto, 63, said in an interview. “It may be one of the most impactful speeches a freshman has ever given — at least in all the years that I’ve been involved. It was amazing. That speech moved votes.’'

Bridgeport

Despite being indicted and currently facing a federal trial on felony charges for campaign finance fraud, state Sen. Dennis Bradley is running for re-election in the primary. The local Democratic Party abandoned Bradley and endorsed Herron Gaston as the party’s candidate, but Bradley qualified for the primary.

Bradley was accused of conspiracy and fraud regarding a campaign kickoff party that he says was actually an event for his law firm clients. Prosecutors charge that Bradley’s Senate campaign stole $84,140 in public financing for a primary campaign grant in 2018 and tried, but failed, to steal another $95,710 taxpayer-financed campaign grant to run in the general election in November. He won and continues to serve in the legislature.

After a federal grand jury indicted Bradley, he was stripped of his committee assignments at the state Capitol by Senate President Pro Tem Martin Looney of New Haven.

A senior pastor at a United Methodist Church and a graduate of Yale Divinity School, Gaston has the backing of Mayor Joe Ganim and party chairman Mario Testa — two powerhouses in Bridgeport politics who have won numerous elections through the years.

Registering to vote

Unlike the general election in November, there is no provision for voters to register on the day of the primary and then vote.

The final day to register to vote is Monday at noon. Unaffiliated voters can also switch their registration to Republican or Democrat until noon Monday at their local registrar’s office and then vote in the primary Tuesday.

Christopher Keating can be reached at ckeating@courant.com