Republican House members Cathy McMorris Rodgers and Jaime Herrera Beutler are looking at tough general elections as each had less than half the vote on primary night. It was a good primary night for Washington’s Democrats, as all six incumbent House members had healthy leads.
Cathy McMorris Rodgers, the fourth-ranking Republican in the U.S. House of Representatives, is headed for the toughest general election of her career, as she led Democrat Lisa Brown by less than 1 percentage point Tuesday night.
Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler, R-Camas, also is headed for a difficult general election, with Democratic candidates garnering more votes than Republicans in her district on primary night.
All of Washington’s Democratic members of Congress had hefty leads.
Combined with the retirement of Republican Rep. Dave Reichert, the relatively weak showings by the Republican incumbents — in districts that Donald Trump won handily in 2016 — raised Democratic hopes of picking up as many as three congressional seats in November, a huge potential boost as the party tries to take back control of the U.S. House.
“Democrats should be ecstatic about tonight’s results,” state Party Chair Tina Podlodowski said. “We’re proving that running in every race in every place is a winning strategy.”
1st Congressional District
Rep. Suzan DelBene, D-Medina, held a commanding lead in her race for a fourth term representing the northwest corner of Washington. The former Microsoft executive led Republican Jeffrey Beeler, a Sultan City Council member, 60 percent to 25 percent Tuesday night.
2nd Congressional District
Rep. Rick Larsen, D-Everett, seeking his 10th term representing western Snohomish County, is headed to the general election with 66 percent of the primary night vote. Uncle Mover, a perennial candidate, had a narrow lead for second place.
3rd Congressional District
Herrera Beutler will face Democrat Carolyn Long, a political-science professor at Washington State University’s Vancouver campus, in this southwest Washington district in November.
Herrera Beutler led in her race for a fifth term, with 41 percent of the vote, followed closely by Long at 37 percent. But the five Democrats in the race got a hair over 50 percent of the primary night vote, just edging Herrera Beutler and the other Republicans.
4th Congressional District
Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Sunnyside, will face Democrat Christine Brown, a veteran Tri-Cities television reporter, in his race for a third term representing this vast swath of Eastern Washington. Newhouse led Brown 62 percent to 38 percent.
5th Congressional District
McMorris Rodgers, R-Spokane, will face Democrat Lisa Brown, a former majority leader of the state Senate in a race that has drawn national attention and money to Eastern Washington. McMorris Rodgers, the fourth-ranking Republican in Congress, narrowly led Brown, the former chancellor of WSU Spokane, 47.5 percent to 47 percent.
McMorris Rodgers has raised about $3.8 million and Brown has raised about $2.4 million.
6th Congressional District
Rep. Derek Kilmer, D-Gig Harbor, was cruising toward the general election as he seeks a fourth term representing Tacoma and the Olympic Peninsula. Kilmer led Republican Douglas Dightman, a Shelton physician, with 64 percent of the vote to 32 percent for Dightman.
7th Congressional District
Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Seattle, will be a big favorite in the general election against Republican Craig Keller. Jayapal had 81 percent of the vote to 19 percent for Keller.
9th Congressional District
For the third straight election cycle, Rep. Adam Smith, D-Bellevue, will likely face Republican Doug Basler, a Kent business owner and talk-radio host, in the general election.
Smith led in the district spanning from Bellevue to north Tacoma, with 50 percent of the vote Tuesday night. Basler had 27 percent and progressive challenger Sarah Smith had 23 percent.
10th Congressional District
Rep. Denny Heck, D-Olympia, had a big lead in his race for a fourth term. Heck led Republican Joseph Brumbles, 60 percent to 31 percent.