elections Archives | Northwest Public Broadcasting

Elections Officials Say There’s No Evidence Washington State Systems Have Been Compromised

By Austin Jenkins October 23, 2020

A person drops off a ballot for Washington state's primary election, Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2020, at a collection box at the King County Administration Building in Seattle. CREDIT: Ted S. Warren/AP

State and local election officials in Washington said Thursday that election systems here are secure and haven’t been hacked. Those assurances follow multiple reports in recent days of efforts by foreign actors to interfere with the upcoming national election. Read More

With Elections Under The Microscope, Washington Has A Fierce Race For Secretary Of State

By Austin Jenkins October 16, 2020

Republican Kim Wyman, left, is seeking a third term as Washington Secretary of State. Democratic challenger Gael Tarleton is seeking to unseat Wyman.

For more than half a century, Republicans have had a lock on Washington’s Secretary of State’s office. This year, Democrats hope to end that five decade run by unseating incumbent Kim Wyman who’s seeking a third term. Continue Read More

New Research Suggests In-Person Voting May Be Less Risky Than Previously Thought

By NPR News August 22, 2020

A man checks to cast his ballot in Kenosha, Wis., on April 7. A new study suggests that in-person voting in that Wisconsin primary did not produce a surge of new coronavirus cases. CREDIT: Kamil Krzaczynski /AFP via Getty Images

The report concludes Wisconsin voters who braved the pandemic and went to the polls in April did not see a surge in COVID-19 infections, although another study reaches the opposite conclusion. Continue Reading New Research Read More

A Dog Days Of Summer Primary And A Ton Of Candidates: Guide To Washington’s Statewide Races

By Austin Jenkins July 15, 2020

Washington's August 4 primary ballot is chock full of candidates even though traditional campaigning has, in many cases, been put on hold because of the coronavirus pandemic. CREDIT: Washington Secretary of State's Office

Washington’s typically sleepy August primary will test the endurance of voters as they navigate a larger-than-usual crop of candidates. The robust turnout of would-be officeholders may be, at least partially, the result of the state making it easier to qualify for the ballot in light of the coronavirus pandemic. Read More

Supreme Court Upholds Laws Punishing ‘Faithless Electors’ In Case Involving Washington Voter

By NPR News July 6, 2020

The federal Supreme Court will decide whether Electoral College delegates are required to support the presidential candidate who wins their state.

Monday's decision brought a sigh of relief from election experts, who worried that if Electoral College delegates were free to vote as they chose, the 2020 election would have turned into a free-for-all, with no rules to prevent corruption and manipulation, with delegates offered gifts and even cash for their votes, and blackmail also a possibility. Read More

President Trump Repeats Unfounded Claims About Mail-In Voting, Threatens Funding To 2 States

By NPR News May 20, 2020

People stand in line at a Detroit polling place during Michigan's March 10 presidential primary. Because of the pandemic, the state's top election official is sending absentee ballot applications to every registered voter for August and November elections.

Elections are run by state and local governments, and it's unclear what legal means the president would have to withhold funds from the states. Continue Reading President Trump Repeats Unfounded Claims About Mail-In Read More

Washington, Idaho And 4 Other States Vote: Your Guide To ‘Big Tuesday’

By NPR News March 9, 2020

The 2020 Washington presidential primary ballot requires voters to select a party, which is new, and many people don't care for it. CREDIT: Scott Leadingham/NWPB

Tuesday's contests offer 352 delegates among six states. Michigan is the biggest prize, and it could be another pivot point in this Democratic primary. Continue Reading Washington, Idaho And 4 Other States Vote: Your Guide To ‘Big Read More

UPDATE: Latinx People Make Up Half of Yakima. The City Council May End Up With No Latinx Members

By Enrique Pérez de la Rosa November 7, 2019

The only Latina candidate running for Yakima City Council appears to have lost her bid. That means Yakima -- the population of which is nearly 50 percent Latinx -- will likely be governed by an all-white council for the first time since 2015. Read More

Experts Warn: Threats To 2020 U.S. Election Not Limited To Russia

By NWPB News October 30, 2019

People cast their ballots for the 2016 general elections at a crowded polling station as early voting begins in North Carolina, in Carrboro, North Carolina, in 2016. CREDIT: Jonathan Frank/Reuters

U.S. intelligence agencies reported Russian, Chinese and Iranian influence activities targeting last year’s midterms, and a senior FBI official last week singled out Beijing as a particular source of concern. Continue Reading Experts Warn: Read More

Will A Massive Effort To Secure The 2020 Vote End Up Superfluous Or Not Enough?

By NPR News September 8, 2019

Officials at every level say they're changing their approaches to election security as the presidential race comes into view. One challenge, though, is not knowing exactly how to prepare. Continue Reading Will A Massive Effort To Read More

Washington’s Changed Presidential Primary Means New Strategy For Candidates Like Bernie Sanders

By NWPB News July 22, 2019

Organizers for Bernie Sanders' 2020 campaign have updated their efforts in Washington, one of a growing number of states switching from caucuses to primary elections for selecting presidential candidates. CREDIT: TED S. WARREN/AP

Bernie Sanders easily won the 2016 Washington caucus against Hillary Clinton, but the state's shift to a primary presents a challenge for his campaign: converting the passionate caucus support he enjoyed in the last election to broader turnout in 2020. Read More

Washington Election Officials Sound Alarm Over New Voter Registration System

By Austin Jenkins July 11, 2019

If Washington voters don't mail in ballots, they can return them in person to drop boxes like this one at the Yakima County Elections Office. CREDIT: ESMY JIMENEZ/NWPB

County election officials in Washington are warning that a new statewide voter registration database system is not ready for the state's August 6 primary and could result in some voters getting incorrect ballots or no ballot at all. The concerns reached a crescendo on Tuesday at a work session of the Washington Senate's State Government, Tribal Relations and Elections Read More

Washington 5th District Race Draws Criticism For McMorris Rodgers Ads

By Zachary Garner July 28, 2018

The campaign of Cathy McMorris Rodgers sent this and similar ads to Washington 5th Congressional District voters ahead of the Aug. 7, 2018 primary.

The race for U.S. House in eastern Washington has taken a negative turn. Despite criticism, 5th District Republican Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers has doubled down on a controversial ad campaign attacking her Democratic opponent, Lisa Brown, using information proven to be misleading and false. Read More

‘Seattle Post’? Not A Thing. Russia Sought To Exploit Trust In Local News During 2016 Campaign

By NPR News July 12, 2018

Russia's information attack against the United States during the 2016 election cycle sought to take advantage of the greater trust that Americans tend to place in local news. The information operatives who worked out of the Internet Research Agency in St. Petersburg did not stop at posing as American social media users or spreading false information from purported news Read More

Record Number Of Native Americans Running For State And Federal Offices In 2018

By NPR News July 4, 2018

Deb Haaland worked on President Obama's 2008 campaign before chairing New Mexico's Democratic Party. Now she's running for office with a record number of other Native Americans across the country.

In Oklahoma, there is a race between two Native American candidates, one a Democrat and the other a Republican. As for statewide offices, there are more Native Americans running for lieutenant governor alone, six candidates, than the number who ran for statewide offices across the country in 2016. Read More

Oregonians Deliver Loads Of Comments About Proposed Weapons Ban

By Dirk VanderHart May 10, 2018

File photo of a modified civilian legal AR-15. CREDIT: ZGAUTHIER - TINYURL.COM/Y7PYGKCZ

In what is likely a record, the Oregon Secretary of State’s Office in recent weeks fielded nearly 1,600 pages of comments criticizing a ballot title for Initiative Petition 43. Continue Reading Oregonians Deliver Loads Of Comments About Proposed Read More

U.S. Voting System Remains Vulnerable 6 Months Before Election Day. What Now?

By NPR News May 8, 2018

Officials have their eyes open to the threats in a way they didn't in 2016, but they are limited by a lack of time and resources. Continue Reading U.S. Voting System Remains Vulnerable 6 Months Before Election Day. What Now?Read More

Russian Threat To U.S. Elections To Persist Through 2018, Intel Boss Warns Congress

By NPR News February 13, 2018

Moscow's interference in the United States and the West has continued since 2016 and is forecast to persist through this year's midterm races, the U.S. intelligence community says. Continue Reading Russian Threat To U.S. Elections To Persist Read More

Washington State Tells DOJ Voter Rolls Are ‘Accurate’  

By Austin Jenkins July 31, 2017

FIle photo. Washington state’s director of elections has responded to President Donald Trump’s Commission on Election Integrity. PHYLLIS FLETCHER / NORTHWEST NEWS NETWORK Listen Washington state’s voter rolls are “accurate,” and the state follows federal election laws. That’s the message Washington Director of Elections, Lori Augino, is sending to the U.S. Read More

Gingrich Attracts North Idaho Voters Still On The Fence

By Sueann Ramella February 24, 2012

Newt Gingrich and his wife Callista attended a campaign rally in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, Thursday evening. PHOTO CREDIT: JESSICA ROBINSON / NORTHWEST NEWS NETWORK COEUR D’ALENE, Idaho – Newt Gingrich was in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, Thursday night to fund raise and rally voters before the state’s Super Tuesday caucus. Newt Gingrich: “Barack Obama is,… Read More