SPOKANE COUNTY, Wash. — Tuesday marked the primary election in Washington state.
Several top-ticket races were on the Aug. 4 ballot, including governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state and attorney general. All Congressional seats are also up for re-election.
Primaries in Washington are run in a top-two fashion. This means that the top two candidates with the most votes, regardless of party preference or affiliation, will move on to the general election in November.
Key Races
Governor
Incumbent Gov. Jay Inslee will face off against Republican challenger Loren Culp in the November general election.
Inslee, who is running for his third term, captured 52% of the vote after the second round of election results was released Wednesday afternoon. Culp, the police chief of Republic, Wash., had 16% of the vote.
Joshua Freed (8%), Tim Eyman (7%), Raul Garcia (5%) and Phil Fortunato (4%) also garnered support.
A total of 36 gubernatorial candidates appeared on the ballot.
Washington 5th Congressional District (U.S. House of Representatives)
Incumbent Republican Cathy McMorris Rodgers has advanced to the general election in Washington's 5th congressional district.
McMorris Rodgers has captured 48% of the vote so far, followed by Dave Wilson with 27% of the vote. Eight-term incumbent McMorris Rodgers was first elected in 2004.
Washington’s 5th Congressional District covers much of Eastern Washington, including 10 counties: Asotin, Columbia, Garfield, Ferry, Lincoln, Pend Oreille, Spokane, Stevens, Walla Walla, and Whitman.
The following are the candidates who appeared on the primary election ballot:
- Brendan O’Regan (Independent)
- Stephan T. Major (Republican Party)
- Dave Wilson (Democratic Party)
- Cathy McMorris Rodgers (Republican Party)*
Note: Chris Armitage (Democratic Party) appeared on the ballot, but announced on July 17 that he was ending his campaign due to mental health and cited that "he was made aware of an allegation that what I considered at the time to be a consensual relationship was not."
Washington 4th Legislative District, Seats 1 & 2
Washington’s 4th Legislative District covers much of east Spokane County, including Spokane Valley and Liberty Lake, in the state legislature.
Seat 1 is currently held by controversial Republican Matt Shea, who is not running for re-election. Shea has come under fire after an independent investigation found that he participated in or helped promote acts of domestic terrorism against the United States, as well as his ties to a biblical warfare training group.
Seat 2 is held by Republican Bob McCaslin, who is running for the seat vacated by Shea.
The following candidates appeared on the ballot for Seats 1 and 2.
Seat 1
- Dave Whitehead (Republican Party)
- Mike Conrad (Republican Party)
- Lori Feagan (Democratic Party)
- Bob McCaslin (Republican Party)
Seat 2
- Nathan R. Sybrandy (Republican Party)
- Rob Chase (Republican Party)
- Leonard Christian (Republican Party)
- Lance Gurel (Democratic Party)
Feagan and McCaslin are leading the primary election race for Seat 1 after early returns.
Feagan has captured 40% of the vote so far, while McCaslin has 36% at last check. Lance Gurel (39%) and Rob Chase (32%) are currently leading the primary race for Seat 2.
Other Key Races
Washington Attorney General
Incumbent Attorney General Bob Ferguson captured 57% of the vote after initial returns.
Attorney Matt Larkin, a Republican, has captured 25% of the vote so far. Attorney Brett Rogers has 12% and Mike Vaska has 7%.
Ferguson has been attorney general for eight years.
Washington 4th Congressional District (U.S. House of Representatives)
Washington’s 4th Congressional District covers a large amount of central and eastern Washington. This includes seven counties: Adams, Benton, Douglas, Franklin, Grant, Okanogan, and Yakima.
Incumbent Republican Dan Newhouse, who has held office since 2015, is leading with 57% of the vote after early returns. Douglas E. McKinley, a Democrat, has captured 28% of the vote.
Spokane County Commissioner – Districts 1 & 2
The Spokane County Board of Commissioners is the legislative body for Spokane County.
This year, the seats representing Districts 1 and 2 are up for election. District 1 represents the north and northeast areas of the county, and is currently represented by incumbent Republican Josh Kerns. District 2 covers southeast Spokane County and is represented by incumbent Republican Mary Kuney.
Republican Josh Kerns is leading for District 1 with 60% of the vote so far, followed by 40% of the vote for Democrat Ted Cummings.
Republican Mary Kuney is leading with 58% of the vote so far for District 2, followed by 41% for Democrat David Green.
Other Races
The following are other state and local elections on the ballot. The candidates are listed in the order they will appear on the ballot, according to the Washington Secretary of State website. An asterisk (*) denotes the incumbent for that office.
Statewide
Lieutenant Governor
Outgoing U.S. Rep. Denny Heck (28%) and Senate Floor Majority Leader Marko Liias (17%), both Democrats, led the race for lieutenant governor after the first round of results were released on Tuesday night.
Nearly a dozen candidates lined up to take Lt. Gov. Cyrus Habib's seat, after the Democrat announced earlier this year that he would vacate it to join the clergy.
The higher profile candidates also included former state legislator Dick Muri (10%) and former Pierce County Republican Party chair Marty McClendon (11%).
Washington Secretary of State
Incumbent Kim Wyman, a Republican, and Democrat Gael Tarleton are leading in early primary results.
Wyman has captured 50% of the statewide vote so far and Tarleton, a state legislator, has 45% of the vote.
Four candidates were on the ballot: Incumbent Kim Wyman, Ed Minger, Gentry Lange, and Gael Tarleton.
Superintendent of Public Instruction (Nonpartisan position)
Incumbent Chris Reykdal is leading after the first round of results Tuesday with 40% of the vote.
Maia Espinoza is currently coming in second, with 24% of the vote.
Commissioner of Public Lands
Incumbent Hilary Franz, a Democrat, is leading with 51.54% of the vote. Sue Kuehl Pederson, a Republican, is coming in second with 22%.
State Treasurer
Democrat Mike Pellicciotti is in the lead with 54.05% of the vote. Republican Duane A. Davidson currently has 45.83% after Tuesday night's count
State Auditor
Democrat Pat McCarthy is coming in first with 48% of the vote. Republican Chris Leyba is coming in second with 40%.
Insurance Commissioner
Democrat Mike Kreidler is pulling ahead with 60% of the vote. Republican Chirayu Avinash Patel is coming in second with 28% of the vote.
Local Races
Washington 3rd Legislative District - Seat 1
- Marcus Riccelli (Democratic Party)*
- Laura D. Carder (Republican Party)
Washington 3rd Legislative District – Seat 2
- Timm Ormsby (Democratic Party)*
- Bob Apple (Republican Party)
Washington 3rd Legislative District – Senator
- Dave Lucas (Republican Party)
- Andy Billig (Democratic Party)*
Washington 4th Legislative District – Senator
Republican Mike Padden is coming in first after Tuesday night's count with 56% of the vote. Democrat John Roskelley is coming in second with 37% of the vote.
Washington 6th Legislative District – Seat 1
- Zack Zappone (Democratic Party)
- Mike Volz (Republican Party)*
Washington 6th Legislative District – Seat 2
- Christian M. McLachlan (Democratic Party)
- Jenny Graham (Republican Party)*
- Tom McGarry (Democratic Party)
Washington 7th Legislative District – Seat 1
- Georgia D. Davenport (Democratic Party)
- Jacquelin Maycumber (Republican Party)*
Washington 7th Legislative District – Seat 2
- Joel Kretz (Republican Party)*
- JJ Wandler (Independent)
Washington 9th Legislative District – Seat 1
- Brett Borden (Libertarian Party)
- Mary Dye (Republican Party)*
Washington 9th Legislative District – Seat 2
- Joe Schmick (Republican Party)*
Washington 9th Legislative District – Senator
- Jenn Goulet (Democratic Party)
- Mark G. Schoesler (GOP)*
Washington 12th Legislative District – Seat 1
- Adrienne Moore (Democratic Party)
- Keith Goehner (Republican Party)*
Washington 12th Legislative District – Seat 2
- Mike Steele (Republican Party)*
Washington 12th Legislative District – Senator
- Brad Hawkins (Republican Party)*
Washington 13th Legislative District – Seat 1
- Eduardo Castaneda-Diaz (Democratic Party)
- John ‘the man’ Malan (List Classical Democrat preference)
- Tom Dent (Republican Party)*
Washington 13th Legislative District – Seat 2
- Alex Ybarra (Republican Party)*
Washington 16th Legislative District – Senator
- Frances Chvatal (Democratic Party)
- Mark Klicker (Republican Party)