Paul Queary, a veteran AP reporter and editor, is founder of The Washington Observer, an independent newsletter on politics, government and the influence thereof in Washington State.
The only Seattle City Council incumbent who looks to survive is Dan Strauss, who represents the Ballard-centered 6th District. Strauss’s opponent, Pete Hanning, did poorly in the August primary and didn’t draw the kind of independent support that other challengers did.
Gubernatorial races polling to find issues that resonate, and why the entrance of Jamie Herrera Beutler into the land commissioner's race might fizzle.
Builders are typically looking for favorable climates to build things, and generally oppose things like rent control, requirements for affordable units, and high construction impact fees. All three of the candidates they’re backing face progressives who are likely to embrace those ideas.Â
It looks like a crowd on the leftward edge of the race that would seem to benefit Kevin Van De Wege, who figures to be the choice of timber industry interests who would prefer more industry-friendly management of the state’s forests.
The biggest question about Mullet’s campaign is whether he’s got a real shot to get out of next August’s primary, given the presence of Attorney General Bob Ferguson and former U.S. Rep. Dave Reichert.Â
Ferguson’s fundraising machine is working to create a sense of inevitability among the political donor class in aid of choking off the flow of money to opposition campaigns. With just under a year before the 2024 primary, he’s got a nearly 7-1 advantage.
Fat-cat money seems to have done the trick in helping establishment candidates in Seattle, but pro-business incumbents in Spokane and Whatcom are struggling.