WA filing closes, U.S. House battleground and GOP test emerge

WASHINGTON - With candidate filing complete, Washington enters a consequential midterm cycle featuring a nationally watched House battleground in Southwest Washington and an open-seat test of the state Republican Party's direction.

Nine out of Washington's 10 U.S. House members are seeking reelection. Most of these seats are deemed safe for the incumbent, but Southwest Washington's 3rd Congressional District will help determine whether Democrats retake control of the chamber. The swing district is held by two-term Democrat Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, and early nonpartisan analysis suggests the race is a toss-up.

Control of the House could hinge on a small number of competitive districts like Washington's 3rd. Republicans hold a narrow majority following the 2024 elections, and a modest shift in competitive districts nationwide would overturn House leadership. Democratic leaders have cast their effort to retake the House as imperative to checking the Trump administration amid ongoing debates about the cost of living, immigration and foreign conflicts, including the Iran war.

Meanwhile, Central Washington's open 4th Congressional District race could reveal whether voters in one of the state's most reliably Republican regions still favor a more traditional conservative approach associated with retiring Rep. Dan Newhouse, who at times broke with President Donald Trump during his tenure.

Candidates for federal positions filed with the Washington secretary of state's office. Online filing opened Monday and closed at 5 p.m. Friday.

Washington's primary election is Aug. 4, and the general election is Nov. 3.

3rd Congressional District

The race for Washington's 3rd Congressional District is the state's most competitive congressional contest and will be among the most closely watched House races in the country. The mostly rural district spans the southernmost portion of Western Washington, bordering Oregon, and includes Clark, Cowlitz, Lewis, Pacific, Wahkiakum and Skamania counties, and a slim portion of southern Thurston County.

The incumbent: Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, of Washougal, is seeking a third term after building a national profile as a Democrat willing to diverge from her party. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee dubbed her afrontline incumbent" this year, signaling that the party views the seat as one of its top defensive priorities and will pour resources into her campaign.

As of March 31, Gluesenkamp Perez has raised $4.5 million, according to Federal Election Commission filings, and spent $1.1 million.

Challengers: Republican John Braun, the state Senate minority leader, has raised $1.2 million and spent just shy of $280,000 as of March 31, according to filings. Braun has been endorsed by Trump and named a "MAGA Majority" candidate by the National Republican Congressional Committee, an indication that national Republicans are expected to heavily invest in the race. "It's a district that Republicans have held for a long time," Braun told The Seattle Times. "I represent a sizable portion of the district."

Democrat Brent Hennrich is also challenging Gluesenkamp Perez. Hennrich has raised $167,000 and has been a vocal critic of the congresswoman, calling her a "disappointment" and positioning himself as a "true Democrat."

Six others have filed to run for the office. None had more than $50,000 in campaign finance filings available with the Federal Election Commission as of Friday.

What to watch: Eyes across the nation will be on this race as it heats up. Trump won the district in all three of his presidential bids, but Republicans lost the House seat in 2022 when Gluesenkamp Perez narrowly defeated far-right Republican Joe Kent. She defeated Kent again - with a wider margin - in 2024. Braun enters the race as a more moderate Republican than Kent, potentially broadening the GOP's appeal in the district. At the same time, Gluesenkamp Perez has drawn criticism from some Democrats over her voting record. Still, she has the advantage of incumbency, and a political environment anticipated to favor Democrats in the midterms.

4th Congressional District

Republican Rep. Dan Newhouse is retiring after six terms, kicking off an open race for the seat in a deeply conservative Republican swath of Central Washington. The rural district encompasses Yakima, Douglas, Okanogan, Grant, Benton and Klickitat counties, and parts of Adams and Franklin counties.

The candidates: Eleven candidates have filed for the office; two well-recognized Republicans have eclipsed others in fundraising.

Amanda McKinney, Yakima County commissioner, is endorsed by Trump, House leadership and Washington's only other Republican member of Congress, Rep. Michael Baumgartner. She has raised just shy of $524,000 as of March 31, according to federal filings, and has said Central Washington "deserves a pro-Trump conservative to represent us in Congress."

Jerrod Sessler, who lost to Newhouse in 2024 and had received Trump's endorsement that cycle, is running again. He has raised $402,500 as of March 31, according to federal filings. Sessler has frequently promoted conspiracy theories about the COVID-19 vaccine, the Jan. 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol and the 2020 presidential election. He has said that he is "running to deliver real conservative leadership for WA-04."

Republican state Sen. Matt Boehnke is also vying for the seat; he has raised just shy of $60,000 as of March 31, according to filings. Boehnke, a moderating voice in the state Senate Republican Caucus, describes himself as a "fiscal conservative who will fight for America First ideas and has criticized the other two for what he calls performative politics. He has said he will seek a Trump endorsement if he advances through the primary.

What to watch: Newhouse was one of 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump after a mob of Trump's supporters attacked the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. He is one of only two such Republicans who remain in the House.

Newhouse's departure offers a test of whether the state's most conservative district still supports the more moderate Republican ideology he represented, or whether the party's base has shifted more firmly toward Trump-style politics. The two apparent front-runners, McKinney and Sessler, are already more aligned with Trump. As the race unfolds, it will be notable how strongly they lean into his MAGA vision, and whether voters show an appetite for a candidate willing to challenge the president.

1st Congressional District

The safely Democratic district encompasses parts of King and Snohomish counties, including areas north of Seattle, Redmond, Kirkland and parts of Bellevue. Rep. Suzan DelBene, of Medina, is serving her seventh term representing the district and has raised $2.7 million as of March 31, according to filings.

Four Democrats, one Republican and one independent have filed with the Washington secretary of state to run for the office. Only two candidates have fundraising filed; DelBene has far surpassed them both.

DelBene is a key figure among national Democratic Party leadership. She has chaired the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee since December 2022. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries announced in 2024 that DelBene would serve a second term, with the task of recruiting and supporting candidates to take back the House in 2026.

2nd Congressional District

Washington's 2nd Congressional District encompasses Island, San Juan, Skagit and Whatcom counties, and western Snohomish County. It is a safely Democratic district that Rep. Rick Larsen, of Everett, has held since 2001.

If Democrats retake the House, Larsen is poised to chair the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, which oversees highways, transit, aviation, rail, water infrastructure, pipeline safety and the U.S. Coast Guard.

Larsen has raised $1.6 million in his bid for a 14th term as of March 31, according to filings, and no other candidate has reported fundraising activity with the Federal Election Commission. Four candidates, two Democrats and two Republicans, have filed candidacies with the secretary of state's office.

5th Congressional District

Rep. Michael Baumgartner, of Spokane, is serving his first term representing Eastern Washington's 5th Congressional District, which covers Spokane, Walla Walla, Ferry, Stevens, Pend Oreille, Lincoln, Whitman, Columbia, Garfield and Asotin counties, along with parts of Adams and Franklin counties. The district is solidly Republican.

Twelve candidates, spanning Democrats and independents, have filed challenges to the freshman member of Congress. Baumgartner's fundraising has eclipsed them all, standing at $1.4 million as of March 31, according to federal filings. Democrat Carmela Conroy has raised $300,000 as of March 31.

6th Congressional District

Democratic Rep. Emily Randall, of Bremerton, is serving her first term representing the blue 6th Congressional District, which stretches across Clallam, Jefferson, Kitsap, Mason and Grays Harbor counties and part of Pierce County.

Four candidates filed challenges against the freshman member; none of the candidates have fundraising filings available with the Federal Election Commission. Randall has raised nearly $1 million as of March 31.

7th Congressional District

Rep. Pramila Jayapal, of Seattle, is seeking a sixth term representing Washington's 7th Congressional District. The district encompasses most of Seattle, and Vashon Island, Shoreline and parts of Burien and Normandy Park. It is a solidly Democratic district.

Jayapal has built a national profile as a progressive lawmaker on issues like immigration and civil rights, and if Democrats retake the House, she is poised to chair the House Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security and Enforcement, which oversees immigration and refugee policy.

One Republican and one Democrat filed challenges against Jayapal; none have fundraising filings available as of March 31. Jayapal has raised $2 million.

8th Congressional District

Rep. Kim Schrier, of Issaquah, is vying for a fifth term representing Washington's 8th Congressional District, which includes eastern King County and portions of Snohomish and Pierce counties and stretches to Kittitas and Chelan counties.

The district is less blue than most others in Washington state; Schrier was the first Democrat to win the seat when she beat Republican Dino Rossi in 2018. She is chair of the Democratic Doctors Caucus and part of the New Democrat Coalition.

Five Republicans and one Democrat have filed challenges. Schrier's fundraising has eclipsed them all, at $2.4 million as of March 31, according to federal filings. Republican Trinh Ha has raised just less than $103,000.

9th Congressional District

Rep. Adam Smith, of Bellevue, is seeking a 15th term to represent Washington's 9th Congressional District, which spans central Puget Sound, including parts of Seattle, Bellevue and Federal Way.

If Democrats retake the House, he is poised to chair the House Armed Services Committee, which oversees the Department of Defense and defense-related policies, including the annual National Defense Authorization Act.

Four candidates have filed challenges against Smith, though Smith's fundraising far exceeds theirs at $1.2 million as of March 31, according to federal filings. Former Seattle City Councilmember and socialist firebrand Kshama Sawant, who said she will base her campaign on opposing U.S. military support for Israel and supporting Medicare for all, is among those running against Smith. Sawant has raised just shy of $450,000 as of March 31.

10th Congressional District

The 10th Congressional District stretches from Tacoma to Olympia and is safely blue. Rep. Marilyn Strickland, of Tacoma, is vying for a fourth term and has raised $1.2 million for reelection.

Strickland holds leadership roles in several caucuses, including the Congressional Black Caucus, the New Democrat Coalition and the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus.

Five candidates have filed challenges against Strickland, though none had fundraising filings available with the Federal Election Commission as of March 31.

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