Washington elections, 2016

President of the United States

Washington has 12 electoral votes for the presidential election, which are projected to be awarded to Hillary Clinton.

Statewide party caucuses and primaries were held in the spring of 2016 to determine the allocation of state delegates to the respective Democratic and Republican party national conventions. Bernie Sanders won the Democratic caucus in March, defeating Hillary Clinton and taking 73 percent of delegates; Donald Trump won the Republican primary, taking 76 percent of delegates. A non-binding primary for the Democratic party held in May resulted in a victory for Hillary Clinton.

United States House of Representatives

All 10 of Washington's seats in the United States House of Representatives will be up for re-election in 2016. All but one of the incumbents will run for re-election, the exception being Jim McDermott (D) of the 7th district. McDermott's seat was won by Pramila Jayapal (D). The remaining seats were retained by the incumbents.

United States Senate

Incumbent Democratic senior Senator Patty Murray ran for re-election to a fifth term in office, defeating Republican challenger Chris Vance by 18 points.

Attorney General

Incumbent Attorney General Bob Ferguson, elected in 2012 as a Democrat, sought reelection, opposed by Joshua B. Trumbull, who ran as a Libertarian. Ferguson won by 35 points.

Governor

Incumbent Governor Jay Inslee was re-elected to his second term over Port of Seattle Commissioner Bill Bryant.

Lieutenant Governor

Incumbent Lieutenant Governor Brad Owen, first elected to the office in 1996, announced that he would not seek a sixth term.

Four Democrats (three of whom were state senators), four Republicans, two third-party candidates, and one independent competed in the primary election. Marty McClendon (R) and Cyrus Habib (D) finished as top two and advanced to the general election, where Habib won by 9 points.

Public Lands Commissioner

Incumbent Public Lands Commissioner Peter J. Goldmark, elected in 2008 and reelected in 2012, announced his intention to not seek a third term in office.

Five Democrats, one Republican, and one Libertarian competed in the primary. Steve McLaughlin (R) and Hilary Franz (D) finished as top two and advanced to the general election. Franz was elected with 53% of the vote.

Secretary of State

Incumbent Secretary of State Kim Wyman, elected in 2012 as the only Republican to hold a statewide office on the West Coast, is seeking reelection. Former Seattle City Councilmember Tina Podlodowski announced her bid in January 2016, seeking to become the first Democrat to hold the office since 1965. Wyman retained her seat with 55% of the vote.

State Auditor

Incumbent State Auditor Troy Kelley, elected as a Democrat in 2012, was indicted over federal charges of felony theft and money-laundering. Several attempts to remove him from office, including a threat of impeachment by the legislature, proved unsuccessful. Kelley did not file to run for a second term.

Two Democratic, one Republican and two independent candidates competed in the primary. Mark Miloscia (R) and Pat McCarthy (D) finished as top two and advanced to the general election. McCarthy won by 5 points.

State Treasurer

Incumbent James McIntire announced on December 16, 2015, that he would not seek a third term as Washington State Treasurer. Five candidates are running to succeed him: state senator Marko Liias, former Port of Seattle commissioner Alec Fisken, pension consultant John Paul Comerford, Benton County treasurer Duane Davidson, and investment firm executive Michael Waite. Liias, Fisken, and Comerford are running as Democrats; Davidson and Waite, as Republicans.

Duane Davidson and Michael Waite, both Republicans, finished as top two in the primary election and advanced to the general election, where Davidson won the position.

Superintendent of Public Instruction

Incumbent Randy Dorn declined to run for a third term as Superintendent of Public Instruction. Nine candidates ran in the nonpartisan election. Erin Jones and Chris Reykdal finished as top two and advanced to the general election. In a close race, Reykdal edged out Jones by one point. Jones conceded the election on November 22.

State Senate

Twenty-five of the forty-nine seats in the Washington State Senate were up for election. Republicans held a narrow majority in the Senate, taking 26 seats compared to 23 for the Democrats. Seven incumbent senators retired, creating vacancies that had the potential to swing the split of party votes. With some races still undecided as of November 29, 2016, Republicans look to retain control of the Senate.

State House of Representatives

All 98 seats in the Washington House of Representatives were up for election. The outgoing House had a narrow Democratic majority, with 50 seats compared to the Republicans' 48. As of November 29, 2016, the Democrats look to have retained their majority, though a handful of races are yet to be decided.

Ballot measures

Local elections