SPOKANE COUNTY, Wash. —
It's the final stretch to the general election on November 8th, and there is a lot on the line this election cycle.
For starters, Spokane County added two new commission districts, which could change the makeup of party representation. As it turns out, the commissioner race is seeing the most money raised and spent. Plus, two of Washington state's federal seats are up for election as well.
So, we followed the money.
Washington's Public Disclosure commission website tracks local and state candidate campaign finances.
Right now, out of all the Spokane county races, the PDC shows Democratic candidate Maggie Yates raised the most funds: $192,062.59.
Yates is running for Spokane County's newly drawn district 5. She's hoping to unseat Republican Al French, who's sat on the board of county commissioners the last 10 years.
According to the PDC, French raised the second highest campaign funds at $176,456.11.
In the primary election, Yates secured more votes than French, which could be why, even though Yates has raised more than him, French has spent $18,000 more than Yates on this campaign. In fact, most of French’s expenditures went to TV ads.
The second most funded race in Spokane County is the newly drawn commission district 1. Republican candidate Kim Plese's campaign raised $133,381.42. While her opponent Democratic candidate Chris Jordan raised $118,741.63.
On the Federal level, Republican incumbent Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers is running for a 10th term representing Washington's 5th district. Democratic candidate Natasha Hill is hoping to unseat her.
According to the Federal Election Commission, McMorris Rodgers has raised $6,005,842.41. Her opponent, who is new to the political realm, has raised $341,914.70.
But, Washington’s U.S. Senate race is most contested in this election. And the campaign funds prove it.
Democratic incumbent Patty Murray brought in $18,765,793.57. She’s spent $2 million more than this while her opponent, Republican Tiffany Smiley, raised $16,519,954.12 and spent about $2 million less than that.
These campaign totals don't include third party support that comes without the candidate's approval or collaboration. They're referred to as independent contributions. Various groups will spend several thousand dollars to campaign for or against candidates.
In Spokane County, Al French has the most funds raised against him at $118,166.37. Behind him is Spokane county prosecutor candidate Larry Haskell at $57,597.69.
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