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Incumbent Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R) defeated former state Sen. Lisa Brown (D) in the November 6, 2018, general election for Washington's 5th Congressional District.
All 435 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives were up for election in 2018. The Democratic Party gained a net total of 40 seats, winning control of the chamber. This race was identified as a 2018 battleground that might have affected partisan control of the U.S. House in the 116th Congress. Heading into the election, the Republican Party was in the majority holding 235 seats to Democrats' 193 seats, with seven vacant seats. Democrats needed to win 23 GOP-held seats in 2018 to win control of the House. From 1918 to 2016, the president’s party lost an average of 29 seats in midterm elections.
Rodgers was last re-elected in 2016 by a margin of 19 percentage points. That year, Donald Trump (R) carried the district by a margin of 13 percentage points. Heading into the election, no Democratic candidate had won election to represent the 5th District since 1992. Both Brown and McMorris Rodgers outraised all previous congressional candidates in the district's history; as of September 30, 2018, McMorris Rodgers had raised $5.1 million to Brown's $4.6 million. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) named Brown on its Red to Blue list, indicating that it would provide her campaign with organizational and financial support. As of October 2018, three election forecasters rated the race Leans Republican.
Washington's 5th Congressional District election
| Poll | Poll sponsor | Lisa Brown (D) | Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R) | Undecided/other | Margin of Error | Sample Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FM3 Research/Brown Campaign Sept. 16-20 | Brown Campaign | 46% | 49% | 5% | +/-4.3 | 521 |
The chart below contains data from financial reports submitted to the Federal Election Commission.
| Name | Party | Receipts* | Disbursements** | Cash on hand | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cathy McMorris Rodgers | Republican Party | $5,863,432 | $5,739,785 | $158,674 | As of December 31, 2018 |
| Lisa Brown | Democratic Party | $5,763,983 | $5,709,605 | $54,378 | As of December 31, 2018 |
|
Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2018.
* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee." |
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This section provides an overview of federal and state elections in Washington from 2000 to 2016. All data comes from the Washington Secretary of State.
This chart shows the results of the presidential election in Washington every year from 2000 to 2016.
Election results (President of the United States), Washington 2000-2016
| Year | First-place candidate | First-place candidate votes (%) | Second-place candidate | Second-place candidate votes (%) | Margin of victory (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 |  Hillary Clinton |
54.3% |  Donald Trump |
38.1% | 16.2% |
| 2012 | Barack Obama |
51.2% | Mitt Romney |
41.2% | 10.0% |
| 2008 | Barack Obama |
57.6% | John McCain |
40.5% | 17.1% |
| 2004 | John Kerry |
52.8% | George W. Bush |
45.6% | 7.2% |
| 2000 | Al Gore |
50.2% | George W. Bush |
44.6% | 5.8% |
This chart shows the results of U.S. Senate races in Washington from 2000 to 2016. Every state has two Senate seats, and each seat goes up for election every six years. The terms of the seats are staggered so that roughly one-third of the seats are up every two years.
Election results (U.S. Senator), Washington 2000-2016
| Year | First-place candidate | First-place candidate votes (%) | Second-place candidate | Second-place candidate votes (%) | Margin of victory (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Patty Murray |
59.0% | Chris Vance |
40.1% | 18.9% |
| 2012 | Maria Cantwell |
60.4% | Michael Baumgartner |
39.5% | 20.9% |
| 2010 | Patty Murray |
52.4% | Dino Rossi |
47.6% | 4.8% |
| 2006 | Maria Cantwell |
56.9% | Michael McGavick |
39.9% | 17.0% |
| 2004 | Patty Murray |
55.0% | George R. Nethercutt, Jr. |
44.7% | 10.3% |
| 2000 | Maria Cantwell |
48.7% | Slade Gorton |
48.6% | 0.1% |
This chart shows the results of the four gubernatorial elections held between 2000 and 2016. Gubernatorial elections are held every four years in Washington.
Election results (Governor), Washington 2000-2016
| Year | First-place candidate | First-place candidate votes (%) | Second-place candidate | Second-place candidate votes (%) | Margin of victory (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Jay Inslee |
54.4% | Bill Bryant |
45.6% | 8.8% |
| 2012 | Jay Inslee |
51.5% | Rob McKenna |
48.6% | 0.9% |
| 2008 | Christine Gregoire |
53.2% | Dino Rossi |
46.8% | 6.4% |
| 2004 | Christine Gregoire |
48.9% | Dino Rossi |
48.9% | 0.0% |
| 2000 | Gary Locke |
58.4% | John Carlson |
39.7% | 7.1% |
This chart shows the number of Democrats and Republicans who were elected to represent Washington in the U.S. House from 2000 to 2016. Elections for U.S. House seats are held every two years.
Congressional delegation, Washington 2000-2016
| Year | Republicans | Republicans (%) | Democrats | Democrats (%) | Balance of power |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 4 |
40% | 6 |
60% | D+2 |
| 2014 | 4 |
40% | 6 |
60% | D+2 |
| 2012 | 4 |
44.4% | 5 |
55.5% | D+1 |
| 2010 | 4 |
44.4% | 5 |
55.5% | D+1 |
| 2008 | 3 |
33.3% | 6 |
66.7% | D+2 |
| 2006 | 3 |
33.3% | 6 |
66.7% | D+2 |
| 2004 | 3 |
33.3% | 6 |
66.7% | D+2 |
| 2002 | 3 |
33.3% | 6 |
66.7% | D+2 |
| 2000 | 3 |
33.3% | 6 |
66.7% | D+2 |
A state government trifecta occurs when one party controls both chambers of the state legislature and the governor's office.
Washington Party Control: 1992-2019
13 years of Democratic trifectas • No Republican trifectas
| Year | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governor | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D |
| Senate | R | D | D | D | D | R | R | D | D | D | D | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | D | D |
| House | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | S | S | S | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D |
Demographic data for Washington
| Washington | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|
| Total population: | 7,160,290 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 66,456 | 3,531,905 |
| Gender | ||
| Female: | 50.1% | 50.8% |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 77.8% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 3.6% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 7.7% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 1.3% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0.6% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 5.2% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 12% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 90.4% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 32.9% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $61,062 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 14.4% | 11.3% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Washington. | ||
As of July 2016, Washington's three largest cities were Seattle (pop. est. 724,745), Spokane (pop. est. 217,108), and Tacoma (pop. est. 213,418).
