Meet a Competitive House Race: Washington 8th District (Dino Rossi vs. Too Many Infighting Dems)

Welcome to “Meet a Competitive House Race,” a new Paste feature in which we highlight—you guessed it—a competitive 2018 House race from somewhere in America. Between now and election day, we’ll hopefully hit them all. You can see a full list of other House races we’ve profiled at the bottom of this page.

What’s the deal with today’s district? Where is it?

The land of grunge and Starbucks (but for rich people) is our host this time around, as we bring Washington’s 8th into focus. This district groups together a collection of prominent eastern Seattle suburbs, such as Sammamish, Issaquah and Auburn, with several rural communities nestled in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains.

Who the hell lives there? How do they vote?

Historically, Washington’s 8th has been the lone Republican stronghold in the state west of the Cascades, despite a growing urban population due to the expansion of the tech industry in the Seattle metro area. In its 30-plus year history, the district has never produced a Democratic member of Congress, even with the the urban-rural population disparity widening. However, the demographic shift did contribute to the district voting blue in every presidential election since 1992, including a three point victory for Hillary Clinton in 2016.

Is Trump going to screw the Republican?

He could indirectly—his screwing reach is vast—but the connection between GOP frontrunner Dino Rossi and the president is far looser than past profiled candidates.

Gimme some more background

Unlike previous races we’ve covered, the 8th district has no incumbent after Rep. Dave Reichert announced his retirement at the end of his seventh term. Rossi is currently the only Republican in the field, but has no real standing on the national stage. Despite this, he has expressed his support for President Trump despite Trump being his “seventeenth” choice. The most prominent example of his pro-Trump sentiment came during the 2016 Republican National Convention when Rossi stood in opposition to Washington GOP delegates’ attempted disruption in the face of Trump’s nomination. He even got his own ‘80s bully who doesn’t care if the youth center is torn down style line when confronting the opposition: “Game over. This is a two-person race.”

What’s up with the Republican(s)?

With Reichert’s retirement, the GOP holds no incumbent advantage. To counteract that, the state’s top conservatives tapped Dino Rossi due to his history as a bipartisan state legislator and budget guru. Rossi is most heralded for closing the state’s $2.7 billion budget gap while working alongside Democratic Governor Gary Locke during his time in the State Senate.

While he enjoyed success and popularity on the State Senate’s Ways and Means Committee, his subsequent political endeavors have not fared as well. Rossi has run for Governor and lost twice, including the closest Gubernatorial race in recorded history in 2004. He followed that up with a failed bid for the U.S. Senate in 2010 and has since been best described as a State Senate substitute due to his filling the terms of two legislators in 2012 and 2016 respectively.

Rossi’s positions don’t stray far from the Republican consensus, meaning that the main reason why he’s the last hope to keep the district red is that he can straddle the aisle and cater to the region’s differing populations. He’s a milquetoast politician who doesn’t like to take definite stances on any issue that isn’t financial in nature (especially when it comes to women’s health and LGBTQ issues), and his inability to get over the hump on the national level makes it hard to be comfortably confident in his ability to hold the seat for his party.

What’s up with the Democrat(s)?

The race to bar Rossi from the Hill has been taken on by eight individuals, though three are emerging as top contenders: Kim Schrier, Shannon Hader and Jason Rittereiser.
Schrier, a Sammamish pediatrician, Hader, a doctor and former CDC manager, and Rittereiser, a former King County prosecutor with roots in the district’s rural region, don’t differ much on key issues facing the district, such as healthcare and DACA protections. DACA is of great importance to the district as it would be hit the hardest of any district in the Northwest by Dreamers losing their immigration protections. The trio has also split endorsements from a collection of union’s and activist groups.

What is coming to define the Democratic race are beliefs that the deck is being stacked in favor of Schrier by Democratic forces, most notably Washington State Democratic party chair Tina Podlodowski. “We need a robust, free and fair primary election, not a coronation,” said Hader. Rittereiser also relayed remarks he’s heard form donors charging Podlodowski with “using her power to attempt to manipulate the outcome of the primary election in favor of her preferred candidate.” Schrier denies that she has received any preferential treatment from the party, but she has surged in campaign funds following her endorsement by the powerful pro-Democratic women’s pac EMILY’S List. The controversy is far from being settled and has the danger of overshadowing the race, or worse, disenfranchising voters in the midst of the blue wave.

What do the polls say?

Rossi is the candidate with the most name recognition in the district, which has allowed him a large head start in fundraising. He’s currently raised more money than the bottom five democratic candidates combined, but Schrier, Hader and Rittereiser are beginning to close the gap in recent months. Among the Dems, Schrier holds a comfortable lead, with Hader recently topping Rittereiser for second place. Altogether, candadites have raised $4.7 million in campaign funds, making the race the most expensive House race in the state since 2012.

What’s weird about the district?

Like California, Washington utilizes the the top-two primary system, where the two candidates with the most votes move on to the general election despite party. The 8th district isn’t one where Dems have to fear not getting a candidate through the primary, but the continued infighting and accusations against the state’s Democratic powers could paint a target on the emerging candidate for Rossi to hammer once the Aug. 7 primary is in the rearview.

Give me a prediction

The Democrats have never had a better shot to flip this district, and have the momentum and appeal to do so. Paste can see this district swinging blue, so long as the claims of favoritism don’t come to define the road to the primary.

Past races:
—California 48th: Dana Rohrabacher, vs. some Democrat, eventually
—Florida 26th: Carlos Curbelo vs. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell
—Colorado 6th: Mike Coffman vs. Jason Crow