MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIR
Hello Democrats and happy Friday!
First – I wanted to let you know that we will be closing our office next week in celebration of Thanksgiving and to give our team a well deserved break to rest and recharge after a successful election cycle and in advance of 2024! Whether you are traveling far, or staying right here in Washington State we want to wish you a happy and restful Thanksgiving with friends, family, and the people you care about most. 2024 will be a sprint and it’s important we all charge our batteries now so we can be ready to support Democrats at every level!
Second – With over 99% of ballots counted, we are very close to having a final picture of this year’s results – and we wanted to walk you through outcomes for our most closely watched races.
A few words on turnout. At this point we are showing a statewide turnout of 36.13% which will trend slightly higher when all is said and done. While not the record breaking turnout we aim for every cycle, this is solid performance for an odd-numbered year and tracks closely with the past several election cycles. With that being said, we need to pick up the pace heading into 2024 and are doing all we can to launch a robust and effective turnout program statewide!
Here’s where results stand in major elections – we’ve noted where races have been called, as well as results we expect will hold:
- In Spokane – I’m pleased to announce that Lisa Brown has won with 51.7% of the vote and will be the next Mayor of Spokane and the first Democrat to hold that seat since 2011! Betsy Wilkerson, Paul Dillon, and Kitty Klitzke have also secured strong victories. Every vote matters!
- In Pierce County – We’re so excited that Jamika Scott and Olgy Diaz (former WA Dems staff) have secured victory on the Tacoma City Council!
- In Snohomish County – Susanna Johnson has defeated her MAGA opponent in the Sheriff’s race, with 51.5% of total votes
- In SW Washington – Most of our targeted Democratic candidates have won handily, with Democratic stalwart Don Orange bringing in a particularly strong 68.9% in his race for re-election for Port of Vancouver. Democratic enthusiasm is alive and well in Clark County and we are ready to utilize every ounce of momentum in next year’s contest for CD 3!
- In Central WA – while we were unable to carry the Yakima City Council for Democrats, we have two bright spots in Sunnyside, where Keren Vazquez and Julie Hart are winning by 153 and 121 votes respectively. While this may not sound like much, races in this city frequently come down to margins in the single digits – these are huge victories for our Democrats!
- In Walla Walla – WA Dems Party leader Jeff Robinson handily won his race for City Council, bringing in 51.8% of the vote.
- In Prosser – Dems are leading in all competitive races and look poised for big victories citywide!
- In Whatcom County – It was a great day for Democrats, with young voters showing up in droves to support our candidates (30% of voters 18-24 turned out, double the state average). Notably, Sheriff-elect Donnell “Tank” Tanksley won with a strong 51.9% of the vote over his conservative opponent. We anticipate some of 2024’s tightest races will be up in Whatcom, and we are gearing up for success!
- And on School Boards Statewide – We beat back nearly all school board candidates endorsed by extremist hate group Moms for Liberty, showing that Washington voters of all stripes want to keep the far right out of our classrooms.
All in all – this election was a rousing success for Democrats in Washington State and we’re thrilled with what we have accomplished.
Thank you for everything each of you did to lead us to victory in so many critical races. We never could have gotten here without massive investments of time, money, energy, and commitment from Democrats statewide and we can’t overstate how grateful we are to have such a strong team across Washington State!
WA Dems Holiday Party – Please RSVP!
We have so much to be proud of this November, but 2023 is just the beginning and we need to remain vigilant and energetic, with our eyes locked firmly on the prizes we must win in 2024. And so, we hope you will join us in kicking off the next year with a bang at our Holiday Party on December 12th!
WA Democrats Holiday Party
Tuesday, December 12th
4:30pm Sponsor Reception | 5:30pm Main Event
1932 1st Ave, Seattle, WA
Tickets
$30 – General Admission | $55 – VIP
Individual Sponsors
$100 – Grassroots Sponsor (1 VIP Ticket + Special Recognition)
$250 – Grassroots Champion (2 VIP Tickets + Special Recognition)
Organizational Sponsors
$500 | $1,000 | $2,500 | $5,000 | $10,000
Please note that an earlier invitation incorrectly listed 12/7 the date of this event –
12/12 is the correct and official date of this event.
We anticipate a terrific event with Democrats from across Washington State and inspiring addresses from some of our top Democratic leaders.
Please address all questions and sponsorship inquiries to joebarden@wa-democrats.org
Thanks so much – we hope you will be able to join us!
NEXT STEPS AND TIMELY ACTION
With the end of the year rapidly approaching, and calendar rapidly filling up with holiday travel and activity we ask that you carve out some time to take one or more of the following actions in support of our statewide mission:
- lease consider investing now to help us make key organizing hires and hit the ground running in 2024! Early organizing allows us to maximize our voter contacts statewide and can make all the difference in the tightest races! The easiest way to give is online here
- Sign up to volunteer now – we need to build a talented roster of volunteers statewide to execute GOTV at a massive scale come election season. It’s “all hands on deck” next year and we would love to have you on board!
- If you’re not already involved, please reach out to your local Party organization, get on their contact list, and attend a meeting if you can! Local Parties are the best source of on-the-ground, timely action opportunities to support our candidates and are critical to sharing our message with voters statewide and leading terrific candidates to victory!
Thanks again so very much for your support and continued engagement. We accomplished so much this year and we’re on track to do so much more in 2024!
Your investment and energy is the lifeblood of our Party and our work. We hope you have a terrific Thanksgiving with friends and family next week and we look forward to reconnecting with you later this month!
DEMOCRATS IN THE NEWS
House Passes Johnson’s Plan to Avert Shutdown in Bipartisan Vote
With many Republicans refusing to back more government spending, Democrats supplied the bulk of the votes for the speaker’s bill to extend federal funding through early 2024.
Push renewed for online child safety bill despite setbacks
Congress has held dozens of hearings on data privacy in the past five years without major legislation moving forward.
On Monday, the U.S. House of Representatives unanimously passed H.R. 786, bipartisan legislation introduced by Representatives Rick Larsen (WA-02), Suzan DelBene (WA-01) and Tony Gonzales (TX-23) that would add Mount Vernon as a court location in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington by voice vote.
Smith’s bill would help expand access to pre-apprenticeship
U.S. Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA, 9th) today introduced the Pre-Apprenticeship Wrap-Around Support Services Fund Act, which would help fund transportation, housing, and childcare stipends, pay for lost hourly wages, and cover certification costs for those enrolled in pre-apprenticeships.
With gratitude,
Chair Shasti Conrad Washington State Democratic Party
The work we do today wins elections tomorrow. If you’re ready to elect Democrats in every race and every place in Washington state, invest in our efforts and make a contribution now.
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Washington State Democrats PO Box 4027 Seattle, WA 98194 United States
