Incumbent Rep. Adam Smith (D) defeated Sarah Smith (D) in the general election for Washington's 9th Congressional District on November 6, 2018. Washington's 9th Congressional District was one of 39 U.S. House districts where a Republican did not run in the 2018 general election.
Adam Smith was elected in 1996 and had held the 9th Congressional District seat for 11 terms. When the district was remapped in 2011, it became the state’s first majority-minority district, a shift the Seattle Times suggested could move the district to the left.
Sarah Smith, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, challenged Adam Smith from the left, running with endorsements from Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D), The Stranger, and several progressive organizations. Adam Smith was, at the time, the ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee and ran with endorsements from both of Washington’s Senators, The Seattle Times, and several labor unions.
If you are aware of polls conducted in this race, please email us.
The chart below contains data from financial reports submitted to the Federal Election Commission.
Name | Party | Receipts* | Disbursements** | Cash on hand | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
D. Adam Smith | Democratic Party | $1,415,994 | $1,623,913 | $191,777 | As of December 31, 2018 |
Sarah Smith | Democratic Party | $125,641 | $112,638 | $13,002 | As of November 26, 2018 |
Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2018.
* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee." |
This section provides an overview of federal and state elections in Washington from 2000 to 2016. All data comes from the Washington Secretary of State.
This chart shows the results of the presidential election in Washington every year from 2000 to 2016.
Election results (President of the United States), Washington 2000-2016
Year | First-place candidate | First-place candidate votes (%) | Second-place candidate | Second-place candidate votes (%) | Margin of victory (%) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2016 | Hillary Clinton | 54.3% | Donald Trump | 38.1% | 16.2% |
2012 | Barack Obama | 51.2% | Mitt Romney | 41.2% | 10.0% |
2008 | Barack Obama | 57.6% | John McCain | 40.5% | 17.1% |
2004 | John Kerry | 52.8% | George W. Bush | 45.6% | 7.2% |
2000 | Al Gore | 50.2% | George W. Bush | 44.6% | 5.8% |
This chart shows the results of U.S. Senate races in Washington from 2000 to 2016. Every state has two Senate seats, and each seat goes up for election every six years. The terms of the seats are staggered so that roughly one-third of the seats are up every two years.
Election results (U.S. Senator), Washington 2000-2016
Year | First-place candidate | First-place candidate votes (%) | Second-place candidate | Second-place candidate votes (%) | Margin of victory (%) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2016 | Patty Murray | 59.0% | Chris Vance | 40.1% | 18.9% |
2012 | Maria Cantwell | 60.4% | Michael Baumgartner | 39.5% | 20.9% |
2010 | Patty Murray | 52.4% | Dino Rossi | 47.6% | 4.8% |
2006 | Maria Cantwell | 56.9% | Michael McGavick | 39.9% | 17.0% |
2004 | Patty Murray | 55.0% | George R. Nethercutt, Jr. | 44.7% | 10.3% |
2000 | Maria Cantwell | 48.7% | Slade Gorton | 48.6% | 0.1% |
This chart shows the results of the four gubernatorial elections held between 2000 and 2016. Gubernatorial elections are held every four years in Washington.
Election results (Governor), Washington 2000-2016
Year | First-place candidate | First-place candidate votes (%) | Second-place candidate | Second-place candidate votes (%) | Margin of victory (%) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2016 | Jay Inslee | 54.4% | Bill Bryant | 45.6% | 8.8% |
2012 | Jay Inslee | 51.5% | Rob McKenna | 48.6% | 0.9% |
2008 | Christine Gregoire | 53.2% | Dino Rossi | 46.8% | 6.4% |
2004 | Christine Gregoire | 48.9% | Dino Rossi | 48.9% | 0.0% |
2000 | Gary Locke | 58.4% | John Carlson | 39.7% | 7.1% |
This chart shows the number of Democrats and Republicans who were elected to represent Washington in the U.S. House from 2000 to 2016. Elections for U.S. House seats are held every two years.
Congressional delegation, Washington 2000-2016
Year | Republicans | Republicans (%) | Democrats | Democrats (%) | Balance of power |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2016 | 4 | 40% | 6 | 60% | D+2 |
2014 | 4 | 40% | 6 | 60% | D+2 |
2012 | 4 | 44.4% | 5 | 55.5% | D+1 |
2010 | 4 | 44.4% | 5 | 55.5% | D+1 |
2008 | 3 | 33.3% | 6 | 66.7% | D+2 |
2006 | 3 | 33.3% | 6 | 66.7% | D+2 |
2004 | 3 | 33.3% | 6 | 66.7% | D+2 |
2002 | 3 | 33.3% | 6 | 66.7% | D+2 |
2000 | 3 | 33.3% | 6 | 66.7% | D+2 |
A state government trifecta occurs when one party controls both chambers of the state legislature and the governor's office.
Washington Party Control: 1992-2019
13 years of Democratic trifectas • No Republican trifectas
Year | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Governor | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D |
Senate | R | D | D | D | D | R | R | D | D | D | D | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | D | D |
House | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | S | S | S | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D |
Demographic data for Washington
Washington | U.S. | |
---|---|---|
Total population: | 7,160,290 | 316,515,021 |
Land area (sq mi): | 66,456 | 3,531,905 |
Gender | ||
Female: | 50.1% | 50.8% |
Race and ethnicity** | ||
White: | 77.8% | 73.6% |
Black/African American: | 3.6% | 12.6% |
Asian: | 7.7% | 5.1% |
Native American: | 1.3% | 0.8% |
Pacific Islander: | 0.6% | 0.2% |
Two or more: | 5.2% | 3% |
Hispanic/Latino: | 12% | 17.1% |
Education | ||
High school graduation rate: | 90.4% | 86.7% |
College graduation rate: | 32.9% | 29.8% |
Income | ||
Median household income: | $61,062 | $53,889 |
Persons below poverty level: | 14.4% | 11.3% |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Washington. |
As of July 2016, Washington's three largest cities were Seattle (pop. est. 724,745), Spokane (pop. est. 217,108), and Tacoma (pop. est. 213,418).