If there’s an anti-incumbent, electoral revolt going on in the United States this year, voters in the Evergreen State evidently aren’t interested in playing a part in it.
Washingtonians who turned out to cast a vote in the Aug. 17 primary election are giving the thumbs up to longtime officeholders and first-time candidates who already have name familiarity, or worked to earn it by starting early and campaigning tirelessly. Candidates who ran low-key campaigns or relied on their statement in the voters’ pamphlet to win votes were finding themselves eliminated.
In the U.S. Senate race, voters gravitated towards Senator Patty Murray and Dino Rossi, who twice ran for governor and lost to Christine Gregoire. Coming in third was former Redskins player and tea party favorite Clint Didier, who probably would have made it to the final round with Murray had Rossi chosen not to run. (Didier’s supporters made his campaign highly visible with a plethora of big yard signs planted all over the state, but it wasn’t enough).
In blessing a Murray-Rossi matchup, voters have set the stage for what promises to be an expensive, ugly fight between Washington’s senior senator and Washington’s best-financed perennial office-seeker.
With the exception of Lewis County, Murray has the support of every county in western Washington, and Rossi has the support of every county in eastern Washington (except Franklin and Spokane, which are backing Murray).
Rossi will have to make up a lot of ground by November if he wants to win.
Incumbents are also doing well in Supreme Court races. Justice Jim Johnson is handily winning reelection, overcoming a late challenge from Pierce County attorney Stan Rumbaugh. A forgettable ad campaign which vaguely assailed Johnson for accepting massive amounts of special interest money in 2004 was not a factor. Rumbaugh did not prevail in even a single county.
Because he was Johnson’s only opponent, Tuesday’s outcome decides this race. However, the other contested Supreme Court position will be on our November ballots, because incumbent Richard Sanders couldn’t get over the 50 percent mark. He will again face off against Charlie Wiggins, who finished in second place and ran ahead of Sanders in King and Jefferson counties. (Finishing in third place was Bryan Chushcoff, who has been eliminated).
Wiggins will need to capture some of the “swing” counties adjacent to King if he is to defeat Sanders in the final round, like his native Kitsap, or Snohomish.
No congressional incumbent had any trouble making it through to stage two, although there is one district where no incumbent is running. Voters in the 3rd, which spans southwest Washington, heavily favored former state legislator and TVW cofounder Denny Heck (the Democratic Party’s nominee), and Jaime Herrera, a Republican state representative.
Many state legislative races were even more devoid of drama. Legislative races always appear on the primary ballot, even when there is nobody to eliminate. Consequently, contests with fewer than three candidates are akin to meaningless straw polls, and there were many of them.
Incumbents in several suburban districts captured by Democrats in 2006 are currently trailing their Republican challengers, which ostensibly isn’t good news for the party in power. However, in most cases, the Republican is only winning by a narrow margin, with a lead of just a few hundred votes. Republicans tend to excel in low-turnout elections (because Republican voters turn out more consistently than Democratic voters), so the results are neither unusual nor unexpected. Unfortunately for Republicans, legislative contests are decided in the autumn, not the summer.
Senate contests worth watching in the general election include: Eric Oemig versus Redmond resident Andy Hill (in the 45th, which includes parts of Redmond), Randy Gordon versus Steve Litzow (in the 41st). Claudia Kauffman versus Joe Fain (in the 47th), and Michael Baumgartner versus Chris Marr (in the 6th). There likely won’t be as many close House contests, but pay attention to Kelli Linville versus Vincent Buys (in the 42nd), Derek Stanford versus Dennis Richter (in the 1st), and Andy Billig versus Dave White (in the 3rd).
We’ll know the outcome of the midterms in just 11 weeks, and ballots will be mailed for the general election even sooner. There’s a lot at stake, so it’s a good idea to start doing homework now, rather than putting it off till November. Always vote, and always try to cast an informed vote!
