By Dennis Box-The Courier-Herald
After the rants, raves, cheers and jeers were done on Election Day, the political parties and candidates picked up their spent balloons and went home to assess the spoils or damage done, depending on the party.
The Democrats rode a tidal wave of change into the state Legislature, gaining commanding majorities in both houses. In the 31st Legislative District, two Republicans appear to have clung to their seats while one Democratic challenger ousted a Republic incumbent.
In the district's Senate race, Republican incumbent Pam Roach from Auburn continued to lead Democratic challenger Yvonne Ward, also of Auburn, after a trench battle campaign that featured political and personal attacks through every medium possible in the last 30 days of the campaign.
As of Monday morning, Roach had a total of 15,250 votes with 52.3 percent. Ward had tallied 13,881 votes for 47.6 percent.
“You're talking to someone who survived the Bush blowout,” Roach said. “This is a major victory. My goal now is to bring the district together. I had Democratic support or I wouldn't have won. I love this district and I work hard for it. I enjoy what I do and I'm effective because I can work with the opposition party.”
Ward has not conceded and is waiting for the results from absentee ballots in King County. About 100 bags containing up to 20,000 ballots were dropped off at polling sites and have to be tallied by county officials. Pierce County also has absentee ballots to be counted. Some of the absentee ballots were dropped off at polling site by voters, rather than taken to the post office because of flooding from the five-day “Pineapple Express” rainstorm.
“This is not over by any means,” Ward said. “I think a lot of those 20,000 votes will be from Auburn.”
This was the second time Ward ran against Roach. In 2002, Roach won by 1,175 votes.
“This was an opportunity for my views to get a better representation,” Ward said. If she does not win this race, Ward said has no plans to run for political office again, but would like to continue to “help other people” with their political aspirations.
In the U. S. Congress the political change was dramatic, with both the House and Senate shifting to the Democrats, but the shift toward the blue side of the aisle in Olympia was stunning.
In the Senate, at least six Republican seats have fallen to the Democrats. On the western side of the state, Roach and Sen. Dale Brandland, who hails from the 42nd District in Whatcom County, will be the only Republicans to have survived.
Sen. Dave Schmidt, R-Mill Creek, from the 44th District, Snohomish County, lost to Steve Hobbs, D-Lake Stevens, and Sen. Luke Esser, R-Bellevue from the 48th District in east King County lost to Rodney Tom, D-Medina.
Claudia Kauffman, D-Kent, took the 47th District Senate seat over Mike Riley, R-Black Diamond, and Democrat Eric Oemig took the 45th District. The Republican incumbents in the 47th and 45th did not run.
Republican Sen. Bob Oke in the 26th District retired from the chamber after 16 years and Democrat Derek Kilmer won the seat.
One of the more surprising losses east of the Cascades was Sen. Brad Benson from the 6th District, Spokane County, who lost to Democrat Chris Marr. Benson entered the Legislature during the Republican revolution of 1994, winning a state House seat. The 6th District Senate seat has been in Republican hands for more than 60 years.
With six seats moving from Republican control, the Democrats now have a commanding 32-17 advantage. Prior to the Nov. 7 election, the Democrats held a 26-23 majority.
In the State House, the Republicans are becoming an endangered species after losing seven seats, giving the Democrats 63-35 dominance over the Olympia agenda.
Not a single Republican challenger in either chamber won, only incumbents.
The House followed the Democratic sweep in the Senate in many of its key races. The previously Republican seat in the 45th District went to Democrat Roger Goodman of Kirkland and Don Barlow defeated incumbent Republican John Serben in the 6th.
The 8th Congressional District race for the U.S. House of Representatives - which featured Dave Reichert, the Republican incumbent, and Democrat Darcy Burner - appears not to have followed the national trend, which turned the U.S. House over to the Democrats.
Reichert gained 98,709 votes, or 50.9 percent, to Burner's 95,195 votes and 49.0 percent, but there are still those absentee ballots in King County to be counted, which gives Burner a glimmer of hope.
For up-to-the-minute election results on all races, initiatives and propositions across the state click on the Secretary of State's Web site, http://www.secstate.wa.gov/
Dennis Box can be reached at dbox@courierherald.com.
