In Washington's fourth congressional district, unofficial results from the first ballots counted show Republican Amanda McKinney and Democrat John Duresky will likely advance to the general election. The Associated Press called the race.
Eleven candidates vied for a longstanding Republican stronghold, as U.S. Rep. Dan Newhouse will retire at the end of his current term. Newhouse has represented this area for more than a decade.
The district covers most of Central Washington, including Douglas, Okanogan, Grant, Yakima, Benton and Klickitat counties. It also serves parts of Adams and Franklin counties.
Washington is a top-two primary state, meaning the two candidates with the most votes go on to November’s general election, no matter their party affiliation.
Anticipated trends
Many people pay less attention to U.S. House races, said Todd Schaefer, a professor and chair of the political science department at Central Washington University, in a recent interview ahead of the primary. Often, Schaefer said, voters go by name or party recognition, especially during midterm elections. If voting by party affiliation, that makes it harder for Republicans when lots of GOP members are running.
“ Even though it's a heavily Republican area, it’s highly likely the Republican vote will be split so much that the Democrat will (also) advance,” he said.
That’s exactly what appears to have happened in this primary. Duresky, the sole Democrat running in the pool of 11 candidates, won enough votes to advance to the general election in November.
This story was updated by NWPB staff, with prior reporting from NWPB’s Courtney Flatt.