Washington 2026 Primary Election Recap | August 7, 2026

Washington 2026 Primary Election Recap

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August 7, 2026

Top-Two Primary • August 4, 2026 • Updated with official counts through Friday, Aug. 7

Updated August 8, 2026, from the Washington Secretary of State’s official results (last statewide update Friday, Aug. 7, 6:30 p.m.). Counties do not count ballots over the weekend; the next updates land Monday, Aug. 10, with county certification Aug. 18. All figures remain unofficial until then. Commentary draws on Washington State Standard live coverage and The Washington Observer’s primary takeaways, updated where later counts changed the picture.

The Big Picture

Four days of counting have sharpened — and in one big case reversed — the story of Washington’s August 4 top-two primary. Roughly 1.65 million ballots have now been counted, up from 1 million on election night, and the late ballots have not behaved uniformly: they broke toward Democrats in most of Puget Sound, but toward Republicans in the one place it mattered most nationally.

That place is the 3rd Congressional District. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez led Trump-endorsed Senate Minority Leader John Braun by 263 votes on election night; by Friday’s count Braun led by 6,692 (39.18% to 36.06%). Both advance, but Braun finishing the primary on top scrambles the narrative in the state’s only true swing congressional seat. The math still offers MGP a path — the combined Democratic vote is about 54%, and progressive Brent Hennrich’s 16.55% is the persuasion battleground of the fall — but the toss-up rating has never looked more earned. Elsewhere in the congressional map, later counts settled WA-8 (Spencer Meline pulled 1,460 votes clear of Trinh Ha for the right to face Kim Schrier) and confirmed comfortable positions for every incumbent, though Adam Smith slipped under 50% in WA-9 as Kshama Sawant’s share climbed to near 17% — not enough to advance past Doug Basler.

In Olympia terms, southwest Washington remains the earthquake. All four Republican House incumbents in Clark County’s 17th and 18th districts — Kevin Waters, David Stuebe, Stephanie McClintock, and John Ley — still trail their Democratic challengers, by margins from four to ten points, despite more than $400,000 in conservative independent spending. Add Democrat Terry Carlson leading Rep. Joel McEntire in the red 19th, Kathryn Lewandowsky’s 92-vote lead over Rep. Sam Low in the 39th, and Rep. Brian Burnett’s one-point squeaker in the 12th (he retook the lead from Stacy Willoughby in late counts), and Democrats’ path toward a House supermajority runs straight through districts Republicans held comfortably two years ago.

The Democrats’ intramural war over the millionaires’ tax tightened rather than resolved. Challenger Krista Perez stretched her lead over Rep. Melanie Morgan from five votes to 377 in the 29th. Rep. Amy Walen’s cushion over New Direction PAC-backed Jessica Forsythe collapsed from 618 votes to 133 in the 48th. And in the 37th, a genuine late surprise: Kelabe Tewolde overtook 28-year incumbent Sharon Tomiko Santos and leads by about 1,000 votes. The counterweight holds, though — Senate Majority Leader Jamie Pedersen (67%) and House Majority Leader Joe Fitzgibbon (74.7%) crushed their challenges, Concerned Taxpayers of Washington’s spending against both fizzled, Rep. Gerry Pollet stayed above 50%, and Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson’s endorsed candidates went nowhere.

The Senate map stays comfortable for the majority, with two cliffhangers. Democrats’ top flip target, the 35th, is a 131-vote race: Sen. Drew MacEwen at 49.22%, Carolina Mejia at 48.91%, both through to November. And in the open 42nd, the Democratic lane has narrowed to nine votes — Michael Shepard 13,023, Eamonn Collins 13,014 — for the second slot behind Republican Erika Creydt, whose 44.6% still trails the combined 52.8% Democratic vote. Sen. Deb Krishnadasan pushed her margin past 14 points in the swing 26th, and the only Democratic Senate incumbent trailing, Jesse Salomon, trails a fellow Democrat, Cindy Ryu, by six.

On the Supreme Court, the late counts favored the incumbents and settled the one open question. Justice Theo Angelis turned his election-night virtual tie with GOP-endorsed Dave Larson into a four-point lead; Justice Colleen Melody climbed past 53%; Chief Justice Debra Stephens holds near 55%. In the open Position 3, Jaime Hawk’s edge over Mike Diaz for the second slot grew to more than 32,000 votes — Diaz’s King County strength never closed the statewide gap, and the Seattle Times’ endorsee appears eliminated. November’s court races still carry unusual stakes: GOP-backed David Stevens tops the Position 3 field, conservatives see their best opening in a decade in Larson, and the unprimaried Position 4 race (Ian Birk vs. Sean O’Donnell) is shaping up as a big-money barnburner — all with a challenge to the new high-earners tax likely headed for the court.

What to watch Monday: Pierce County’s 4 p.m. update (the 29th District races are frozen until then), the nine-vote 42nd Senate margin, the 92-vote 39th, the 133-vote 48th, and whether Braun’s WA-3 lead holds as the last Clark County ballots arrive. Races within a whisker of a half-percent margin could head to automatic recounts after certification on Aug. 18.

Quick Takeaways

• WA-3 flipped after election night: Braun now leads Gluesenkamp Perez by 6,576 votes (39.6%–36.5%) — late SW Washington ballots broke Republican even as most of the state drifted blue.
• All four Clark County GOP House incumbents still trail, and Republicans Sam Low (–92 votes), Joel McEntire, and nearly Brian Burnett (+460) joined the endangered list — the supermajority map is real.
• The income-tax fight tightened everywhere: Perez over Morgan by 377 in the 29th, Walen’s lead down to 133 in the 48th, and Tewolde now leading 28-year incumbent Santos in the 37th.
• Two Senate cliffhangers: MacEwen–Mejia at 131 votes in the 35th, and a nine-vote Shepard–Collins margin for the Democratic slot in the open 42nd.
• Settled since election night: Meline over Ha in WA-8 (+1,460), Ewing over Sutherland in the 39th (+621), Noble over Rezac in the 32nd, Jasmin over Kohlmeier in Spokane’s 3rd, and Hawk over Diaz for Supreme Court Position 3 (+32,000).
• Supreme Court incumbents strengthened: Angelis leads Larson by four points, Melody is at 53%, Stephens at 55% — but conservatives still see November opportunity, especially in the Larson and Stevens races.
• Counting resumes Monday, Aug. 10 (Pierce County at 4 p.m.); certification Aug. 18. Sub-0.5% margins could trigger automatic recounts.

U.S. Congressional Results

No U.S. Senate seat was on Washington’s 2026 ballot. All ten U.S. House seats were contested; the top two finishers in each district, regardless of party, advance to the November 3 general election. Advancing candidates are shown in bold. Party labels reflect each candidate’s stated party preference. All figures are official Secretary of State counts as of Friday evening, Aug. 7.

1st Congressional District — Rep. Suzan DelBene (D), incumbent

2nd Congressional District — Rep. Rick Larsen (D), incumbent

Larsen, seeking a 14th term, sits under 43% — a soft primary showing, though the combined Democratic vote tops 67%.

3rd Congressional District — Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D), incumbent — BRAUN NOW LEADS

The marquee race flipped after election night: Gluesenkamp Perez’s 263-vote Tuesday lead became a 6,576-vote Braun advantage as later ballots broke Republican in SW Washington. The consolation math for MGP: the combined Democratic vote is roughly 54%, and much of the fall campaign will be about winning over Hennrich’s progressive bloc. Cook rates the general a toss-up.

4th Congressional District — OPEN (Rep. Dan Newhouse, R, retiring)

Yakima County Commissioner McKinney, endorsed by President Trump and Speaker Johnson, topped the field. Duresky, the lone Democrat, consolidated the Democratic vote while eight Republicans and others split the rest.

5th Congressional District — Rep. Michael Baumgartner (R), incumbent

A rematch of 2024, which Baumgartner won by about 21 points. His sub-47% showing is weaker than Cathy McMorris Rodgers’ 49.3% primary in 2018.

6th Congressional District — Rep. Emily Randall (D), incumbent

Randall led in all six counties in the district.

7th Congressional District — Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D), incumbent

8th Congressional District — Rep. Kim Schrier (D), incumbent

The seven-vote election-night margin for second place grew to 1,460 votes — Meline has effectively locked up the general-election slot against Schrier.

9th Congressional District — Rep. Adam Smith (D), incumbent

Sawant’s late-count surge (from 12.6% on election night to nearly 17%) wasn’t enough — she and Chaudhry split the anti-Smith left. November will be the sixth Smith–Basler matchup.

10th Congressional District — Rep. Marilyn Strickland (D), incumbent

State Legislative Results | Senate

Democrats currently control the state Senate 30–19 and the House 59–39. Twenty-four of 49 Senate seats and all 98 House seats are on the 2026 ballot. Every contest is listed below with official counts as of Friday, Aug. 7; in two-candidate races both candidates advance automatically regardless of margin.

State Senate (all 24 seats on the ballot)

LD 6 — Sen. Jeff Holy (R), incumbent

LD 7 — Sen. Shelly Short (R), incumbent

LD 8 — OPEN (Sen. Matt Boehnke, R, running for Congress)

Sitting 15th LD Sen. Torres moved districts to run. An all-Republican general — a guaranteed GOP hold.

LD 13 — OPEN (Sen. Judy Warnick, R, retiring)

Ybarra drew no opponent for the open seat — a safe GOP hold. (Fellow Rep. Tom Dent stayed in his House seat.)

LD 15 — OPEN (Sen. Nikki Torres moved to LD 8)

LD 21 — Sen. Marko Liias (D), incumbent

LD 26 — Sen. Deb Krishnadasan (D), incumbent (battleground)

Krishnadasan, who won last year’s bonkers-expensive special election, has grown her margin past 14 points in a top GOP target district.

LD 29 — OPEN (Sen. Steve Conway, D, retiring)

LD 30 — Sen. Claire Wilson (D), incumbent

LD 31 — Sen. Phil Fortunato (R), incumbent

LD 32 — Sen. Jesse Salomon (D), incumbent — TRAILING

The only Democratic Senate incumbent trailing — to a fellow Democrat. Ryu’s lead has grown past six points; November is a Democrat-on-Democrat general.

LD 33 — Sen. Tina Orwall (D), incumbent

LD 34 — Sen. Emily Alvarado (D), incumbent

LD 35 — Sen. Drew MacEwen (R), incumbent — 131-VOTE RACE

Democrats’ top Senate flip target is a statistical tie: 131 votes separate MacEwen and Mejia, with both advancing in the two-way race. Expect an enormously expensive November.

LD 36 — Sen. Noel Frame (D), incumbent

LD 37 — OPEN (Sen. Rebecca Saldaña, D, departing)

LD 38 — Sen. June Robinson (D), incumbent

LD 42 — OPEN (Sen. Sharon Shewmake, D, retiring) — NINE-VOTE RACE FOR SECOND

The Democratic lane has collapsed into a nine-vote margin: Shepard (establishment-backed) leads union-backed Collins 13,023 to 13,014 for the second slot. Whoever survives faces Creydt, whose 44.6% trails the combined 52.8% Democratic vote in this purple district. An automatic recount could loom if the gap stays this tight.

LD 43 — Sen. Jamie Pedersen (D), incumbent (Majority Leader)

Pedersen and allies spent more than $500,000 to defend the seat; he crushed a Mayor Katie Wilson-endorsed challenge from his left, though later counts trimmed him from 71% to 67%.

LD 44 — Sen. John Lovick (D), incumbent

LD 45 — Sen. Manka Dhingra (D), incumbent

LD 46 — Sen. Javier Valdez (D), incumbent

LD 47 — Sen. Claudia Kauffman (D), incumbent

Kauffman won this seat by roughly one point in 2022; an 18-point cushion now.

LD 48 — Sen. Vandana Slatter (D), incumbent

State Legislative Results | House

State House (all 98 seats — each position listed separately)

LD 1, Pos. 1 — Rep. Davina Duerr (D), incumbent

LD 1, Pos. 2 — Rep. Shelley Kloba (D), incumbent

LD 2, Pos. 1 — Rep. Andrew Barkis (R), incumbent