Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Incumbent Congressman Michael Baumgartner, R-Spokane, fills out his Aug. 4 primary election ballot with his 6-year-old daughter, Maria Baumgartner, observing.
SPOKANE – It looks like the race for Eastern Washington's congressional seat will be a rematch.
At the end of the initial tally of ballots on election day, Aug. 4, Spokane Republican Michael Baumgartner and Democrat Carmela Conroy were well ahead in the 12-candidate field.
Baumgartner, the only Republican in the primary, had a whopping 54,205 votes, or 47.97%, district-wide. Conroy was a distant second with 23,536 votes, or 20.83%.
Independent Nate Powell, whose financial insurgency in the final weeks of the campaign, was sitting in third with 16,216 votes, or 14.35%.
No other candidates broke the 5% voter support mark.
Only the Top 2 candidates advance to the Nov. 3 general election.
"We look forward to carrying our momentum into the general election," he said. "We feel very confident."
Neither Conroy nor Powell could be reached for comment before press time.
The last time Baumgartner faced Conroy, the Republican overwhelmed his Democrat opponent, winning by more than 21%. In that 2024 contest, Baumgartner received 240,619 votes and Conroy 156,074.
During his post-election celebration, Baumgartner thanked not only his supporters, but also his opponents.
"It's not easy to run for office," he said.
While Baumgarnter was celebrating his apparent win, he was also taking time to recognize the pain Northeast Washington has sustained in the wildfires that are still burning around the greater Spokane area.
"Obviously, our focus right now is on the fires," he said. "We didn't know election day would be so busy."
Baumgartner said he suspended his campaign activities Saturday as the wildfires blew up around Spokane. He said other political hopefuls did, as well, regardless of party.
As he wrapped up his statements Tuesday night, he took a parting shot at Powell, whom he called a "pretend independent."
Noting Powell had an influx of out-of-state money, Baumgartner said that's not how elections are supposed to be funded, instead suggesting campaigns should be "grass roots."
While the initial counting is over, late-arriving ballots will continue to be counted until canvassing boards meet Aug. 18.
The Office of the Secretary of State will certify the results Aug. 21.
Roger Harnack is the owner/publisher of Free Press Publishing. Having grown up Benton City, Roger is an award-winning journalist, photographer, editor and publisher. He's one of only two editorial/commentary writers from Washington state to ever receive the international Golden Quill. Roger is dedicated to the preservation of local media, and the voice it retains for Eastern Washington.
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