NewzWASHINGTON (AP) — Nine contenders for one of the nation’s most hotly contested congressional seats will compete in the Washington state primary on Tuesday for two spots on the November general election ballot. Voters across Washington will also choose finalists for the state’s nine other congressional seats, as well as for the state Legislature and state Supreme Court. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez is running for reelection for the 3rd Congressional District seat she first won narrowly in 2022.
A former auto shop co-owner, she is the best-known and best-funded of the four Democrats on the ballot. She also faces challenges from three Republicans, including state Senate Minority Leader John Braun, who has a key endorsement from President Donald Trump. The southwest Washington district is expected to be a key U.S.
Washington state has a top-two primary system in which all candidates compete on the same ballot and the two highest vote-getters regardless of party advance to the general election. The 3rd Congressional District borders Oregon to the south and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Trump received 50.3% of the vote from 3rd District voters in 2024, besting the 47% Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris received.
Gluesenkamp Perez received 50.1% of the vote in the 2022 general election and about 52% in 2024. Incumbents are running for reelection in nine of the state’s 10 congressional districts. The exception is the 4th Congressional District, where Republican U.S.
Dan Newhouse is retiring after six terms. Newhouse was among 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump following the Jan. Capitol by a mob of his supporters.
Eleven candidates are running to replace him, including Yakima County Commissioner Amanda McKinney and entrepreneur and former NASCAR driver Jerrod Sessler, both Republicans. Trump endorsed McKinney in January on the five-year anniversary of the insurrection. He previously endorsed Sessler’s unsuccessful bid to unseat Newhouse in 2024.
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