Gregoire, Rossi downplay primary

Analysts: Candidates rely on first election more than they admit

By Brad Shannon | The Olympian • Published August 17, 2008

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The two leading candidates for governor, incumbent Democrat Chris Gregoire and Republican Dino Rossi, say they aren't putting much stock in results from Tuesday's first-ever "top-two" primary election, which is the first rematch since their harrowing battle in 2004, when Gregoire won by 133 votes.

Vote count

Nearly 26,000 ballots already have been returned for Tuesday's all-mail election in Thurston County. That's almost 19 percent of the approximately 139,900 ballots outstanding, chief deputy auditor Ken Raske said.

His office predicts a 48 percent turnout for the state's first-ever top-two primary that lets the top two vote-getters, regardless of party, advance to the Nov. 4 general election. Statewide, Secretary of State Sam Reed predicts a 46 percent turnout with 3.4 million voters eligible; that's the highest in a generation.

Key races that could be decided Tuesday are three state Supreme Court seats, the position of state schools superintendent, Court of Appeals judge and two Thurston County Superior Court judgeships.

Under the top-two, candidates of the same party can advance. That means that in races such as Thurston County commissioner, two Democrats could advance in one race with five candidates. The same is true in the state treasurer race.

In the 22nd Legislative District in Thurston County, two Democrats are advancing automatically because Sen. Karen Fraser and Erik Lee were the only filers. Two Republicans are likely to advance in the 20th District, where Sen. Dan Swecker faces three opponents.

County auditors plan to count ballots just once on election evening, shortly after 8 p.m. Ballots must be postmarked by 8 p.m. or put into drop boxes throughout the county by that time. Additional ballot counts are scheduled for 6 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday and 4 p.m. Friday.

Voters can track results by going to www.vote.wa.gov for statewide figures or the Thurston County Auditor's Office site, www.co.thurston.wa.us/auditor, for local races.
About the candidates

Besides the two main contenders, eight other people have their own reasons for running for governor.

Here is a brief look at all 10 candidates for Washington governor, including their priorities and campaign financing.

John Aiken

•Party: Republican

•Occupation: Public works lead inspector, city of Spokane

•Residence: Medical Lake

•Priorities include: Shifting to a state-run energy system, investing billions of dollars in public housing, shifting public schools to online and putting casinos at highway rest stops

•Web site: www.jwaiken.com

•Raised: $0

Duff Badgley

•Party: Green

•Occupation: Former hospice worker, carpenter, journalist

•Residence: Seattle

•Priorities: Immediately addressing global warming. Ideas include outlawing single-occupancy vehicles in urban areas, diverting Boeing to the manufacture of clean energy projects, and assessing steep carbon taxes on corporations and some individuals.

•Web site: www.oneearth.name

•Raised: $0

Will Baker

•Party: Reform

•Occupation: Unknown

•Residence: Tacoma

•Priorities: Addressing the illegal and unethical election practices of Gov. Chris Gregoire

•Web site: www.thetruthrocks.com

•Raised: $0

Gov. Chris Gregoire

•Party: Democrat

•Occupation: Governor

•Residence: Olympia

•Priorities: Creating jobs, expanding health care, protecting children, and restoring and protecting the environment

•Web site: www.chrisgregoire.com

•Raised: $8.5 million

Christian Joubert

•Party: Democrat

•Occupation: Naturopath and former law teacher

•Residence: Edmonds

•Priorities: A chronic disease-free, justice-rich and prosperity-full state. Holistic health and justice also are listed as priorities on his campaign Web site.

•Web site: http://christianforgovernor2008.com

•Raised: $0

Javier Lopez

•Party: Republican

•Occupation: Retired

•Residence: Lacey

•Priorities: Honesty, ethics and integrity; confronting a fascist government; and cleaning the environment by using his invention that uses air to run engines

•Web site: www.lopez2008.org

•Raised: $0

Dino Rossi

•Party: Republican

•Occupation: Commercial real estate

•Residence: Bellevue

•Priorities: Cut spending, end the early release of prison inmates, improve the monitoring of sex offenders and replace the Washington Assessment of Student Learning

•Web site: www.dinorossi.com

•Raised: $6.7 million

Mohammad Said

•Party: None listed

•Occupation: Physician

•Residence: Ephrata

•Priorities: Said, who ran for Congress in 2004 and 2006, has a slate of international concerns, including national security, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and health.

•Web site: www.drsaid.net

•Raised: $0

Christopher Tudor

•Party: None listed

•Occupation: Hotel executive, entrepreneur

•Residence: Indianola

•Priorities: Streamline the government bureaucracy, ban lobbyists from Olympia, and improve schools by promoting parental involvement and after-school programs.

•Web site: www.tudor2008.com

•Raised: $12,200

James White

•Party: None listed

•Occupation: Airline inspector for Boeing

•Residence: Marysville

•Priorities: End the enormous amount of corruption in the family court system, provide affordable health care and end the abuse of power by public officials

•Web site: www.jameswhiteforgovernor08.com

•Raised: $6,025

The News Tribune

But watch their feet, not their lips: Both candidates are in an all-out sprint -- using the airwaves and relying on surrogates' mailers and ads for help -- to make a big splash Tuesday.

Gregoire might claim bragging rights if she wins big, and Rossi will use a close finish to buttress his claim that the race really is a toss-up going into November.

And with $16 million already raised by 10 candidates for governor, and $13 million spent (once independent groups' outlays are added), there is no question the primary results matter to the campaigns.

"Strategically it's important for the campaigns to be able to say someone is strong or weak; it can undercut or increase their ability to raise money," said Todd Donovan, an author and political science professor at Western Washington University. "But it's like reading tea leaves. … Maybe there is more at stake this year. I think the big thing on both sides is whether Rossi will get more money if he beats expectations."

Turnout for Tuesday's vote is predicted to hit its highest level in decades -- at 46 percent across the state and 48 percent in Thurston County. Secretary of State Sam Reed is crediting the state's new top-two format -- along with vote-by-mail balloting in 37 of 39 counties -- for his high forecast.

Others are skeptical, including Gregoire's camp, and both Democrats and Republicans are hedging about the significance of the primary outcome -- at least until they can point out an advantage.

Rival ad claims

Gregoire, the Democratic one-term incumbent, began running radio ads last week featuring party presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama, who polls say is a popular figure in the state. Obama said Gregoire already has done things on child health care, global warming and job creation that are needed nationally, and he urged voters to get out in force.

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