Remember all those campaign promises from Bob Ferguson about governing as a sensible, pragmatic moderate? Turns out, voters weren’t electing “Bob the Builder” — they got “Bob the Tax Collector” instead.
According to a new Cascade PBS/Elway poll, Ferguson has pulled off a truly stunning achievement: the worst first-six-months approval rating of any Washington governor in more than 30 years. Just 32% of voters think he’s doing a good or excellent job — a full 20 points lower than former Gov. Gary Locke and even 8 points below Jay Inslee, who wasn’t exactly a fan favorite out of the gate either.
The reasons? Take your pick. But the biggest red flag is Ferguson’s complete U-turn on taxes. Despite his campaign posturing about budget restraint and moderate leadership, he signed off on a jaw-dropping $9 billion in new taxes to patch up a $15 billion budget shortfall. That includes a six-cent gas tax increase, because clearly Washington drivers weren’t paying enough already.
He also expanded the sales tax to include digital ads, web design, and nicotine pouches. Guess those tech startups and vape shops were just asking for it.
This wasn’t exactly what voters thought they were signing up for. Even among Democrats, only about 60% think Ferguson’s doing a decent job. Among independents, the numbers are brutal — just 30% of left-leaning independents approve of him, and an overwhelming 92% of right-leaning independents think he’s botched it.
And it’s not just the tax hikes that have people shaking their heads. His administration fumbled early with the resignation of a top aide amid a hostile workplace scandal, and Ferguson’s avoidance of Olympia press conferences didn’t do him any favors either. Leadership? Not so much.
Meanwhile, the Democrat-controlled state Legislature isn’t winning any popularity contests either. Only 1% of voters think lawmakers are doing an excellent job, yet they still managed to ram through rent control, a law giving striking workers unemployment benefits, and that widely hated gas tax hike — which 60% of voters oppose.
So much for moderation. Washington voters wanted a steady hand on the wheel. Instead, they got a hard-left lurch into tax-and-spend territory, paired with confused communication and broken promises. Six months in, the Ferguson administration is looking less like a new chapter and more like a sequel to the dysfunction that voters were hoping to move past.
Here’s hoping next time voters don’t confuse “moderate tone” with “moderate policies.” Because this guy fooled a lot of people — and now we’re all paying the price.
