Strickland leads race for Washington’s 10th Congressional District in early results
Early results Tuesday night showed former Tacoma Mayor Marilyn Strickland leading state Rep. Beth Doglio of Olympia in Washington’s 10th Congressional District race.
Strickland had 136,002 votes (50.2 percent), according to the Secretary of State’s office website. Doglio had 97,357 (35.9 percent). The two Democratic woman advanced to the general election ahead of 17 other candidates in the primary.
But there also were 37,594 write-in votes (13.9 percent) counted Tuesday night. The Washington State Republican Party’s website listed conservative radio show host Marty McClendon as their write-in candidate in the race.
The district includes most of Thurston and Pierce counties and part of Mason County. U.S. Rep. Denny Heck decided not to seek re-election for the seat. He ran to be Washington’s lieutenant governor and is leading that race.
Strickland would be the first Korean-American woman in Congress and the first African American elected to Congress from Washington state, if Tuesday’s tallies hold.
Doglio would be the state’s first openly LGBTQ member of Congress, if elected.
Strickland said Tuesday night, “We are very pleased to have a double-digit lead and to lead in all three counties of the 10th Congressional District.”
She noted that “this was a very competitive race in the primary” with a crowded field.
“We had to earn every single vote,” she said. “... I appreciate their support and I know that there is a lot of work to do.”
Strickland spoke about the importance of “addressing the pandemic and trying to find ways to get a full and complete economic recovery.”
Doglio said in a statement: “The early results were not what we hoped for, but I’m glad we ran a campaign focused on the most important issues. We are looking forward to the rest of the ballots being counted.”
The race drew some big-name endorsements, with former presidential candidates Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders endorsing Doglio. She also was endorsed by U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Seattle), the Pierce County Democrats and Thurston County Democrats, among others.
Some of Strickland’s endorsements included former presidential candidate Andrew Yang, former Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire, and former U.S. Secretary of Commerce and Washington Gov. Gary Locke.
She also was endorsed by former state Rep. Kristine Reeves of Federal Way, who was third in the primary.
Doglio said during the campaign that climate change was one of the reasons she ran for office, and she spoke about her environmental record. She also talked about the need for a Medicare for All system.
Strickland spoke during the campaign about economic recovery and her experience leading Tacoma following the Great Recession. Regarding health care, she said she supports “building upon the success of the Affordable Care Act” and adding a public option that she said will “provide people with a choice of not having to depend on their job to actually get access to health care.”
Almost 271,000 votes have been counted. The district has 476,311 registered voters, the Secretary of State’s office reported.
This story was originally published November 3, 2020 at 8:28 PM with the headline "Strickland leads race for Washington’s 10th Congressional District in early results."
