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Attorney General Bob Ferguson, a Democrat, is set to step into the governor’s mansion following Gov. Jay Inslee’s 12-year stint at the helm. His opponent, former King County Sheriff Dave Reichert, failed to buck a 40-year-trend of Democrats holding the top office in the state.
As of Thursday night, Ferguson was in the lead with 56.21% of the vote. Reichert trailed far behind with 43.58% of votes. The Associated Press called the race for Ferguson Tuesday night.
Both candidates pushed platforms set to tackle public safety in Washington, with Ferguson saying one of his top priorities in the first 100 days would be directing the Legislature to place $100 million as a budget line item to help local jurisdictions hire more law enforcement officers.
During campaign season, the Democrat hammered Reichert on his voting history in Congress when it came to reproductive rights. Ferguson said that in a post-Roe v. Wade world it is necessary to continue to fight at the state level to support reproductive freedom, including positioning Washington as a “sanctuary” state for care.
Public Lands commissioner
In another race expected to land favorably for Democrats, Dave Upthegrove has secured the public lands commissioner race, appearing to have consolidated the progressive votes that were split during the primary.
As of Thursday night, Upthegrove was in the lead with 53.12% of the vote. His opponent, Republican Jaime Herrera Beutler, had won 46.66% of the votes with more than 3 million votes counted.
Upthegrove is set to replace Commissioner Hilary Franz as head of the state Department of Natural Resources, which manages 5.6 million acres of state-owned public land, and leads state wildfire prevention and response.
Upthegrove championed conservation and environmental justice causes during his campaigning.
“We can do better in this state. We can manage forest lands in a way that protects our clean air, clean water and habitat, and fulfills our responsibility to public education,” he said during a Sept. 25 candidate forum.
Congressional District 2
Self-proclaimed MAGA Republican Cody Hart fell far short of garnering the votes to unseat U.S. Congressman Rick Larsen in the District 2 race.
As of Thursday night, Larsen was in the lead with 64.52% of the vote. Hart had managed to only secure 35.22% of the vote.
Larsen, who has served District 2 since 2001, has a history of dominating his opponents, often securing more than 60% of votes during the general election and more than 45% in the primary.
He explained that his performance in the polls is directly linked to the hard work he puts in during campaign season from raising money to ringing doorbells.
“Looks like I’ll be returning to Congress for another two years,” Larsen said Tuesday night, noting that he’s looking forward to getting back to work on the issues he campaigned on.
Larsen ran a campaign focused not only on securing his own seat, but supporting other Democrats in battleground states in an effort to push forward his legislative agenda.
The congressman emphasized the need for the Democrats to take the House in order to codify Roe v. Wade, ensuring women throughout the country have access to abortion services. He also voiced his support for a bill that would create term limits for Supreme Court justices, who are currently appointed for life, and advocated for legislation that would establish a code of ethics for the justices.
He has also helped bring millions of federal dollars into the district in the form of major infrastructure development projects and tribal grants.
With the possibility of former President Donald Trump retaking the White House, Larsen said Democrat control of the House will be key to dismantling Project 2025, which was described by the ACLU as a “roadmap for how to replace the rule of law with right-wing ideals.”
“Democrats will have the majority in the House of Representatives, and we will destroy Project 2025,” Larsen told Cascadia Daily News. “There’s nothing in Project 2025 that does anything for the American people.”
Isaac Stone Simonelli is CDN’s enterprise/investigations reporter; reach him at isaacsimonelli@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 127.
