Primary Colors, An Election

During even years, half of the Senate, all House seats, and select county positions are up for election. Every four years, statewide seats such as Governor, Lieutenant Governor and others are also up. WMFHA focuses on statewide and legislative seats during these years, however there is one local special election also on our radar.

This year there is a special election to fulfill the remainder of Teresa Mosqueda’s Seattle City Council term, which Tanya Woo was appointed to in January 2024. Woo has the support of the majority of the Seattle City Council and has been endorsed by WMFHA. Her opponents support the failed policies of the previous council, which Seattleites rejected last year by voting in a new council majority. After a flurry of ads, Alexis Mercedes Rinck, running to the left of Woo, garnered 50% while Woo came in with 38%, the other 12% going to the other progressives in the race.  

Although most races exited the primary with the results we expected, we are paying particular attention to a few.

In the 10^th Legislative District, Incumbent Senator Ron Muzzall (R) 48.24% had a tight primary race with Janet St. Clair (D) 45.64% with a candidate Democrat Denny Sandberg receiving 5.99%, leading to what is anticipated to be a close race. In a traditional R district, 17^th LD that has seen part of the district redrawn and the incumbent Senator Lynda Wilson not returning, there is another chance for the republican majority to shrink further. Rep. Paul Harris (R) has a slight lead 50.62% over White Salmon Mayor Marla Keethler (D) 49.2%. To round out the Senate races we are paying particular attention to, we are staying in SW Washington with the 18^th LD.  Battle Ground councilmember and former mayor Adrian Cortes leads 46.22% to 31.75% over Brad Benton. Although traditionally an R seat, previously held by Senator Anne Rivers, Benton is the far-right type of candidate often embraced by the SW WA GOP that has a hard time in a general election. With far-right candidate Joe Kent once again facing Marie Gluesenkamp Perez for the WA Congressional seat in District 3, you can expect the large resources put into these races by national parties and committees to affect the outcome in these districts down ballot.  As a reminder, Joe Kent defeated incumbent Jamie Herrera-Beutler, after the SW GOP targeted her, only to lose to Gluesenkamp.

In the house there are a number of races that also piqued our interest. As with the Senate, SW Washington is under the microscope. In the 17^th LD, previously held by Rep. Paul Harris, Terri Niles (D) leads Camas Mayor David Steube (R) 47.74% to 27.49% with the remainder going to Hannah Joy (R) at 24.65%. Although the numbers have the combined R vote at +4 points, this race could go either way. As with the Senate seat in the 18^th, a far-right candidate supported by the county GOP, John Ley (R), will be moving to the general) with 38.44% of the vote, compared to the primary leader John Zingale (D) at 47.82%. Although the third-place candidate was a republican with 13.64% of the vote, the congressional race may affect down ballot voting in the district. Not to mention the fact that Ley is facing felony election fraud charges in relation to his filing for the same seat two years prior. 

In the 26^th legislative district, Addison Richards (D) with 49.6% of the vote will face Jesse Young at 33.87%. WMFHA endorsed candidate Jim Henderson failed to make it through to the general with 16.45%. This swing district seems likely to go to Richards as Young is a far-right candidate in a purple district. Finally in the 4^th, Rep. Larry Springer (D) has a fight on his hands with the progressive Melissa Demya (D) nipping at his heals with a 47.63% vote to his 49.13%.  As a pragmatic democrat in the house majority, a loss of Springer would be a blow for business interests and the multifamily industry.

Although a true supermajority doesn’t seem likely after the primary outcomes we witnessed, there is still concern that the majority in the house and senate may gain a seat or two, solidifying their already substantial majority count. Coupled with a move towards more progressive democrats filling more seats, especially with a number of moderate democrats in both bodies not returning, some pundits believe a more progressive platform may emerge next year. However, that may be tempered by projected budget deficits and the budgetary compromises that may need to be brokered towards the end of session.

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