EVERETT — Incumbent Democrats representing Snohomish County in Congress — Suzan DelBene, of Medina, Rick Larsen, of Everett, and Kim Schrier, of Sammamish, — pulled well ahead of their challengers in early returns Tuesday.
DelBene, seeking a seventh term in the 1st Congressional District, earned 63.86% of the vote Tuesday and, if these results hold, is set to face Orion Webster in November’s general election.
Larsen, hoping to clinch a 13th term in the 2nd District, garnered 50.36% and will likely be up against Cody Hart, a self-described “MAGA Republican” who garnered 19.42%.
And Schrier, hoping for a fourth term in the 8th District, was at 51.5% Tuesday and is set to face Carmen Goers, a Republican with 44.27%.
DelBene and Larsen typically cruise through primary and general elections. In 2022, DelBene kept her seat with 63.5% of the vote, Larsen won with 60.1%. Schrier’s races tend to be more competitive. In 2022, she won with 53.3% of the vote.
U.S. Representatives make $174,000 per year and are up for election every two years.
1st District
This year, DelBene faced five challengers for the district encompassing parts of King and Snohomish counties, including Bellevue, Marysville and Arlington.
DelBene, 62, has held the seat since 2012. As a moderate, DelBene helps lead the centrist New Democrat Coalition, the party’s largest caucus in the House. This past term, she served on the Ways and Means Committee, where she helped oversee taxes and other forms of government revenue.
Prior to her election to Congress, DelBene held multiple high-earning positions including director of the state Department of Revenue, director of marketing at Microsoft and vice president of Drugstore.com.
This year, DelBene’s campaign has focused on improving the economy for working-class families, increasing local law enforcement and health care resources and securing reproductive rights. As of this week, her campaign had raised about $2.8 million.
Two Republicans, Orion Webster and Jeb Brewer, were neck-and-neck in the fight to face her in November. They both had under 10% of the primary vote.
2nd District
Larsen received about 56,472 first-count votes Tuesday for the district that stretches from Edmonds up to the Canadian border, encompassing parts of Snohomish County and all of Island, San Juan, Skagit and Whatcom counties.
Hart followed Larsen with 21,779 votes.
Larsen faced seven challengers this primary. They included former Marysville School District teacher and Green Party candidate Jason Call, Sedro-Woolley veteran and Lynnwood City Council member Josh Binda.
Larsen, 59, has been in the House since 2001, and before that served on the Snohomish County Council. As of this week, Larsen’s campaign had raised about $1.8 million.
In the House, Larsen currently serves on the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. Though he’s spent more than two decades in Congress, Larsen told The Daily Herald he still has work to do. If re-elected, he hopes to reauthorize the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The law, passed in 2021, allocated $9.9 billion for various transportation, energy and infrastructure projects statewide. Larsen also wants to continue working with other lawmakers to tackle the fentanyl crisis.
In a statement shortly after the results came out, Larsen said “our work is not slowing down.”
“This fall, our community’s shared values — working hard, caring for each other, and serving the community — are on the ballot,” he added. “The stakes could not be higher. I am running for re-election so I can continue to work to protect reproductive freedom, combat fentanyl in our communities, build an economy that works for everyone, increase access to health care, and support our veterans.”
For Hart, the most pressing issues in the district are illegal immigration, election integrity and inflation. He has said he believes in “the rights of the unborn child” and the Second Amendment right to bear firearms.
8th District
Meanwhile, Schrier received about 57,480 initial votes, followed by Goers with 49,398.
Democrats Keith Arnold and Imraan Siddiqi, as well as Goers, ran against Schrier. The two Democrats combined for about 4%.
District 8 encompasses much of King, Pierce, Kittitas, Chelan and Snohomish counties, as well as a small portion of Douglas County. The site of the 2014 Oso landslide also falls within District 8’s boundaries. Ahead of the landslide’s 10-year anniversary, Schrier, alongside DelBene and Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, D-Skamania County, introduced legislation to reauthorize the National Landslide Preparedness Act through the end of 2028.
Schrier, 55, has been in office since 2019, when she became the first Democrat to win the seat. Before that, she worked as a pediatrician. In the House, she serves on the Committee on Energy and Commerce.
Schrier is campaigning on climate change, education and health care policy. As of this week, her campaign had raised close to $4.5 million.
Goers’ campaign has focused on inflation, public safety and rural health care, among other issues.
Sydney Jackson: 425-339-3430; sydney.jackson@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @_sydneyajackson.
Ta’Leah Van Sistine: 425-339-3460; taleah.vansistine@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @TaLeahRoseV.
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