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As the November election nears, campaign finance data shows local Democrats running for the state Legislature are vastly outraising and outspending their opponents. The data also shows the governor’s race has been the most expensive race in the state.
Most of the incumbent candidates, mainly Democrats in Whatcom County and Republicans in Skagit/Snohomish counties, have brought in more than double or — in some cases — triple what their opponents have made in the same period. They’ve also outspent their opponents significantly, according to data pulled from the Public Disclosure Commission on Tuesday, Oct. 2.
Attorney General Bob Ferguson has outraised his Republican opponent and former King County Sheriff Dave Reichert nearly two to one. Ferguson has brought in $13.5 million while Reichert has $6.6 million. Ferguson also has spent more — spent $12.8 million to Reichert’s $5.4 million. A majority of both candidates’ contributions have come from small donations or party donations.
Rep. Alicia Rule, who is running for reelection in the 42nd District House, has raised nearly $394,000 to keep her Position 1 seat. She’s spent more than $280,000 on TV advertisements, campaign literature, management and consulting, among other expenses. Her biggest donors include the House Democratic Campaign Committee, the Washington State Democratic Central Committee and various political action committees.
Meanwhile, her opponent, first-time candidate Raymond Pelletti, a local real estate agent, has raised $20,000 and spent just under $13,000 of that on newspaper advertisements, campaign materials and more. Pelletti has received donations from the House Republican Organization Committee and the Whatcom County Republican Party, according to the PDC.
A similar story is playing out for Position 2 in the 42nd District House, although with a Republican with more fundraising chops. Rep. Joe Timmons has raised about $373,000 while spending $270,000 to fend off challenger Kamal Bhachu. Bhachu, a hospital engineer at PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center, has brought in $129,000 and spent just under $62,000.
Timmons's biggest donors include the Washington State Democratic Central Committee, the 42nd Legislative District Democrats and various political action committees. Bhachu has received donations from the House Republican Organization Committee, the Whatcom County Republican Party and small contributions from individuals, according to the PDC.
In the Second Congressional District race, U.S. Rep. Rick Larson (D-Everett) has raised $2.3 million between the beginning of 2023 and Oct. 16, 2024, according to Federal Election Commission data. He’s also spent $1.4 million.
Some of Larsen's largest donors since the beginning of 2024 include various Washington tribes, such as the Tulalip Tribes and Lummi Indian Business Council, the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, as well as individual contributions.
Financial disclosures for his opponent Cody Hart are unavailable since he hasn’t raised over $5,000 — the minimum threshold to begin reporting campaign contributions to the FEC.
Heavy spending for ballot initiatives
The battle over contentious state initiatives has also invited heavy spending.
No on 2117, the committee committed to preserving the Climate Commitment Act, has raised $16.2 million and spent $12 million. Steve (former CEO of Microsoft) and Connie Ballmer of the Ballmer Group, which says it aims to improve economic mobilities for children and families, contributed $2.5 million, while the Nature Conservancy and Bill Gates both contributed $1 million to the effort.
Let’s Go Washington, which is responsible for placing all four initiatives on the ballot this year, including Initiative 2117, has raised $8.5 million and spent $7 million.
The three other ballot committees — No on 2066, No on 2109 and No on 2124 — have raised over $33 million. They've spent a combined $21 million.
Let's Go Washington has been fined by the Public Disclosure Commission after commissioners ruled in early October that the political committee had failed to disclose information about how it paid subvendors used by firms it hired to collect signatures for the initiatives it put forth on the ballot.
The group was hit with a $20,000 fine but the commission suspended half of the fine so long as $10,000 was paid within 30 days of the ruling.
Other down-ballot races
Elsewhere locally, the showdown between Republicans in Legislative District 39, which encompasses portions of Skagit and Snohomish counties, is proving spendy for the incumbents.
Rep. Sam Low (R-Lake Stevens) is running for his Position 1 seat against former Rep. Robert Sutherland, who lost to Low in 2022. Low has raised $231,000 while Sutherland has raised $33,000. Low has also outspent Sutherland, $146,000 to $24,000.
Rep. Carolyn Eslick (R-Sultan) has also out-raised and outspent her Republican challenger Jackie Huey. Eslick raised $88,000 and spent $49,000 while Huey raised $3,105 and spent $2,200.
Down-ballot races have produced a few fundraising surprises. Candidates for Skagit County Commission have been busy collecting funds for the race that's pitting two incumbents against two challengers.
Ron Wesen, the incumbent for Skagit Commission District 1, raised $36,000 to his opponent Rylee Fleury’s $28,000. Wesen has spent $31,000 in the race while Fleury has spent $20,000. In the District 2 race, Peter Browning has raised $42,000 to Richard Brocksmith’s $36,000. But Brocksmith has outspent Browning, $35,000 to $28,000.
While a majority of the four candidates have received contributions from either business owners or individuals, Browning and Wesen have received funds from HF Sinclair, a political action committee in the Petroleum industry. Browning has also received money from Marathon Petroleum Corporation, according to the PDC.
Outlier in Charter Review Commission contests
Of the 46 candidates running for 15 seats on the Whatcom County Charter Review Commission, which will review and propose amendments to the county charter, most have raised and spent zero dollars. But charter commission candidate Sandy Phillips has raised $31,220 and spent $27,354.
Sandy Phillips and his campaign manager Harold Phillips said the large sums are reflective of how seriously the candidate is taking this race. “I’ve never run for office before, but I wanted to get elected and it costs money to get elected,” Sandy Phillips said. “So we raised money and we spent money.”
Sandy Phillips contributed more than $20,000 of his own money to the campaign, and he’s spent $21,800 of his expenses so far on management and consulting services. Harold Phillips, also Sandy's son, said he’s been surprised by the gap between their fundraising efforts and the other candidates’ efforts.
Candidates Jon Mutchler, Maya Morales and Kelly Krieger are the only other candidates that have raised or spent money, with Mutchler at nearly $3,000 raised, Morales with around $6,500 and Krieger with about $760.
Fuse Washington, which promotes progressive candidates, has spent about $34 in independent expenditures each for a dozen candidates: Andrew Hansen, Andrew Reding, Charlene Waters, Colton Kaltenfeldt, Eamonn Collins, Liz Darrow, Jennifer Wright, Jessica Rienstra, Morales, Joel Pitts-Jordan, Krieger and Teresa Taylor. The expenditures went to including the candidates in Fuse's Progressive Voters Guide, according to the PDC.
Charlotte Alden is CDN’s general assignment/enterprise reporter; reach her at charlottealden@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 123.
