Tuesday’s Washington state primary was a reality check for several Democrats who thought getting appointed to office was the same as earning it. Spoiler alert: it’s not.

In the 26th Legislative District, Democrat Sen. Deb Krishnadasan is barely hanging on after being gifted her seat. Republican Rep. Michelle Caldier—who’s actually won elections before—is leading by 89 votes. That’s what happens when you’re more aligned with your party’s tax-and-slash session than your district.

Over in the 5th District, Sen. Victoria Hunt (also appointed) is clinging to a modest lead over Republican Chad Magendanz, who’s actually familiar with this thing called “voter accountability.” Apparently, passing rent caps and higher taxes didn’t earn Hunt a warm embrace.

The 33rd gave us a Democrat-vs-Democrat brawl where Edwin Obras, a left-wing darling backed by unions, edged out moderate mayor Kevin Schilling. Republican Darryl Jones was far behind, because it’s hard to compete when the real fight is which Democrat can promise more government.

Meanwhile, in the 48th District, progressive Sen. Vandana Slatter and business-friendly Rep. Amy Walen are burning campaign cash like it’s taxpayer money—nearly $1 million between them just to fight over who voted for bad ideas more gracefully.

Elsewhere, the usual suspects cruised through: Janice Zahn, Osman Salahuddin, Tina Orwall, Emily Alvarado, and Brianna Thomas—all loyal foot soldiers for the party line, all safely tucked into safely blue districts. Yay, democracy.

Bottom line? Democrats appointed half a softball team to the Legislature this year. Voters are now deciding whether they want to keep the benchwarmers—or send in someone who actually earned the jersey. Read more at the Washington State Standard.

A new Cascade PBS/Elway poll just delivered a reality check to Gov. Bob Ferguson and his tax-happy friends in Olympia: even in deep-blue Washington, voters have a limit—and it’s apparently just past their wallets.

Let’s start with the man of the hour. After only six months in office, Ferguson is already underwater, with only 35% rating his performance as “Excellent” or “Good.” That’s worse than Jay Inslee and Gary Locke—two men known more for being forgettable than effective. Thirty-one percent rated him flat-out “Poor,” and nearly a quarter of voters said he’s already underperformed expectations. Not exactly the “heir to the throne” numbers Democrats were hoping for.

The top reason? Taxes. Forty-one percent of Ferguson’s critics cited tax hikes as their main gripe. Toss in another 12% who cited wasteful spending, and you’ve got a full-blown fiscal mutiny on your hands. Maybe repeatedly jacking up taxes while the state bleeds jobs and residents wasn’t the political masterstroke Team Ferguson thought it was.

The Democratic Legislature isn’t faring much better: 66% of voters gave them a “Poor” or “Only Fair” rating, and a laughable 1% called their performance “Excellent.” Just 10% of voters say they feel “very well” represented in Olympia. Translation: confidence is in freefall—and so is patience.

But here’s the kicker: voters still like a lot of progressive policies when you don’t tell them who proposed them or how much they’ll cost. Rent control? 61% support. Gun permits? 63% support. Unemployment checks for striking workers? Somehow still gets 54%. But mention the words “new tax,” and it all falls apart.

A 6-cent gas tax hike? Dead on arrival. Business tax increase on big corporations? Nope. Voters are drawing a bright red line—and Ferguson is standing on the wrong side of it, waving his revenue forecast.

Washington Democrats have become the party of tax hikes disguised as justice, pushing billions in new levies to patch over budget holes they dug themselves. And voters are finally asking: where did all the money go?

If Ferguson and friends don’t figure it out fast, they might find themselves out of touch, out of favor, and—eventually—out of office. Because voters are done footing the bill for progressive failure, no matter how nicely you wrap it in buzzwords. Read more at Seattle Red.

King County voters once again proved they never met a tax they didn’t like, overwhelmingly approving a $1.45 billion parks levy and leaning toward renewing Seattle’s gloriously inefficient Democracy Voucher Program.

The Parks Levy passed with a thumping 70% approval rate, which means homeowners can now look forward to paying about $198 a year so the county can maybe trim some grass, possibly maintain trails, and definitely spend over 22% on wages and benefits. There’s even a “climate response fund” tucked in—because no tax in King County is complete without a vague nod to climate change.

Even some local leaders weren’t buying it—Kent’s mayor called out the levy’s funding formula for shortchanging south county cities. But hey, the rest of the county couldn’t hear her over the sound of their own self-congratulation.

Meanwhile, over in Seattle, the Democracy Voucher Program limped to 55.6% approval, meaning Seattleites will keep funding a government-run coupon system to “amplify voices”… which is code for subsidizing campaigns nobody’s heard of. For just $13 a year (per median home), residents can continue pouring millions into a program with under 5%participation in 2023 and over $6.4 million in overhead costs to hand out $9.4 million in coupons. Fiscal genius, truly.

Yes, it’s still being challenged by critics who think using tax dollars to prop up politics might violate free speech, but the courts have (so far) disagreed.

Bottom line: King County voters just taxed themselves to pay for more government and more politics. Next up—levies for ribbon-cutting ceremonies and lawn signs. Read more at Center Square.

Seattle’s 2025 primary results are in—and if you were hoping the city might pump the brakes on its downward spiral of far-left policy experiments, you’re out of luck. Voters looked at the chaos, the crime, the unaffordable housing, and the collapsing public schools… and said, “Yes, please, give us more of that.”

In the mayoral race, radical activist Katie Wilson—best known for organizing bus riders, not running a city—edged ahead of incumbent Bruce Harrell, who apparently wasn’t progressive enough for the crowd that thinks zoning laws are colonialism. If Wilson wins, expect City Hall to be run more like a protest camp than a government.

City Attorney? Say goodbye to Ann Davison, the lone grown-up trying to bring some law and order back to Seattle. Voters gave a big lead to Erika Evans, a progressive prosecutor who’ll likely treat criminal charges like hate speech. Better download that car insurance app now—your vehicle’s about to get more freedom than you will.

City Council? An all-out lurch to the left:

• Eddie Lin (Position 2), the city lawyer endorsed by The Stranger, is leading—because of course he is.
• Alexis Mercedes Rinck (Position 8) is steamrolling her way to the general with over 75%, ready to turn “equity” into a budget line item for every pet cause under the sun.
• Dionne Foster (Position 9), a UW social work professor and ex-policy advisor, is beating Council President Sara Nelson. Nelson wasn’t exactly a moderate, but apparently thinking twice before handing over city hall to activist mobs was a step too far for Seattle voters.

Over at the Seattle School Board, voters are teeing up a new batch of progressive ideologues to keep the failing system exactly where it is—circling the drain, but with inclusive language.

Bottom line: Seattle just tripled down on the same activist-driven, far-left policies that have made the city unaffordable, unsafe, and unrecognizable. The message from voters? “Let’s keep driving this thing off the cliff—but faster this time.” Read more at MyNorthwest.com.

In Spokane’s sleepy primary, turnout cratered to just 19%—but that didn’t stop progressive incumbent Zack Zappone from declaring voters are “enthusiastically” backing his far-left agenda. With just over 5,700 votes (out of 350,000 registered voters), he’s claiming Spokane is marching forward on housing and public safety—despite record homelessness and rising crime. His November opponent, conservative Christopher Savage, gets another shot after multiple failed runs and a modest war chest.

Meanwhile, in Spokane Valley, conservative incumbents and newcomers made strong showings, with Laura Padden dominating her race and Mike Kelly leading for an open seat. Progressives are clinging to a slim majority on the Spokane Council, but a red November surge—when Republican turnout historically spikes—could flip the script.

Democrats are popping champagne over results in a race where 4 out of 5 voters didn’t even bother. But sure, keep telling yourselves it’s a “mandate.” Read more at Center Square.

In a city where latte foam is more progressive than the City Council, even Seattle’s young men are inching rightward—and Democrats might want to ask themselves why.

New Nielsen data shows that from 2020 to 2025, the percentage of Seattle men aged 18–34 identifying as or leaning Republican ticked up from 21% to 23%. That’s not exactly MAGA country, but in Seattle, it’s practically a red wave.

Meanwhile, their female peers went the other way—hard. Young women identifying as or leaning Democrat shot up from 44% to 56%, while Republican identification collapsed to just 13%. Apparently, campus activism, rainbow flag emojis, and TikTok lectures hit differently depending on which bathroom you use.

So what’s driving the gender gap? Shocker: it might have something to do with the Left’s non-stop anti-male drumbeat. Being labeled “toxic” for existing, watching institutions collapse under identity politics, and getting force-fed activist ideology through pop culture and policy—it’s not exactly a recruitment strategy for dudes who’d just like to be left alone.

Even The Seattle Times’ Gene Balk admits that more women are going to college than men—and campuses these days often double as ideological finishing schools for progressive orthodoxy. But if the Left thinks alienating young men is a temporary side effect, they might want to check the long-term voter rolls.

Bottom line: If Democrats want to win young men back, they might want to lay off the lectures and try respecting their audience. Or, you know, keep doubling down and watch that 23% turn into 33%. Read more at Seattle Red.

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