Page 10 - WCA December Ketch Pen 2020

HEADQUARTERS
Election Update
10
Hello Friends:
I wanted to be sure and get a note out to everyone with an election update.
Vote by mail is nothing new to Washington State and because ballots only need to be “postmarked” by Election Day, it can be a painstakingly slow process to count votes and finalize the results. Two weeks after election night, voter turnout is nearing 85% statewide and there are
still an estimated 11,303 ballots on hand waiting to be processed. However, except for one race, the results are clear!
Statewide Offices
Governor Jay Inslee (D) and other Democrats captured vote totals in the mid-to-upper 50 percentages. The one exception, Secretary of State Kim Wyman (R), who won a third term with 53.58% carrying 35 of the 39 counties.
Legislative Offices
As for the State Legislature, it appears the Democrat majorities in the Senate (28-21) and the House of Representatives (57-41) will remain unchanged. However, some seats flipped and within those numbers there is an apparent shift further to the left within the Democrat caucuses.
However, in a trend that’s been developing for the last four years, Republicans were able to flip the 19th District in SW Washington by taking out two long-time incumbent Democrats:
• Senator Dean Takko (D), who is Chair of the Local Government Committee, lost to Longview Port Commissioner Jeff Wilson (R) by a 44.66% to 55.22% margin.
•
Representative Brian Blake (D), who is the Chair
of the Rural Economy, Ag & Natural Resources Committee, lost to Joel McEntire (R) by a 47.41% to 52.51% margin.
On the flip side, Senator Steve O’Ban (R) lost to Twina Nobles (D) in the swing 28th District by 1,005 votes and Representative Luanne Van Werven (R) lost to Alicia Rule by 2,185 votes in the 42nd District.
In the 10th District, Senator Ron Muzzall (R) reversed an election night deficit to top Helen Price Johnson (D) 50.9% to 49.0% and it appears Greg Gilday (R), who leads Angie Homola (D) by 870 votes, will hold onto the seat Representative Norma Smith (R) is leaving for retirement.
Too Close to Call
All eyes remain on the 5th District where Senator Mark Mullett (D) currently leads Ingrid Anderson (D) by a mere 86 votes in a race destined for a mandatory machine recount and most likely a hand recount. The head-to-head Democrat contest pits the incumbent business moderate against a liberal progressive. While a Mullet loss would not change the total number of Democrats in the Senate, it would shift the internal politics to the left.
Gubernatorial Vacancy
There is much speculation about Governor Jay Inslee joining a Biden Administration. Despite his comments that he would not accept a federal appointment, it may be hard to say “no” to a call from the President-Elect. If that were to happen, the Lt. Governor would be appointed Governor until such time as a special election could be held.
That’s it for an update from Olympia – Wishing everyone the best for Thanksgiving!
Ketch Pen www.washingtoncattlemen.org
December 2020