Candidates in the race for Washington’s Third Congressional District broke the fundraising record for the district last year, based on final filings for the 2022 election.
The Federal Elections Commission released its year-end reports late last month. The latest numbers show all of the candidates who filed with the commission raised about $12.9 million, about $11.5 million of which was raised by the top three candidates.
New Democratic U.S. Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez raised the most money as she collected more than $3.9 million, all in the year 2022. While many candidates announced their decision to run as far back as early 2021, Gluesenkamp Perez’s campaign didn’t start raising money until Feb. 22, based on FEC records.
The congresswoman who flipped the district blue saw the biggest fundraising push of her campaign between July 14 and Sept. 30, raising more than $2.1 million.
Gluesenkamp Perez’s competitor in the general election, Republican Joe Kent, was not far behind with about $3.8 million raised during his campaign. Beginning at the start of 2021, Kent saw more steady fundraising periods, outpacing Gluesenkamp Perez until October.
By the close of the books in 2022, former U.S. Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler raised only a few thousand dollars less than Kent for the election cycle. Herrera Beutler lost a close contest in August as Gluesenkamp Perez and Kent advanced to the general election.
Herrera Beutler’s roughly $3.8 million wasn’t the highest total she raised through her tenure in Congress. In 2020, she raised roughly $4.6 million, more than challenger Carolyn Long, a Democrat, who raised close to $4.2 million.
The total amount of money raised last year was the third-straight election cycle with record-setting receipts, based on FEC records. In 2020, about $8.9 million was raised among all of the candidates, and in 2018, roughly $7.4 million was raised.
Herrera Beutler saw significant competition within her own party during the primary election as candidates who were dissatisfied with her vote to impeach former president Donald Trump in 2021 decided to join the race. Outside of the top-three fundraisers, last year’s contest featured a fourth candidate who broke the $1 million threshold. That was Republican Heidi St. John. Two other Republicans — Leslie French and Vicki Kraft — raised about $148,000 between the two of them.
The 2022 Third Congressional District race was the second most expensive by contributions in the state. The race was only behind the contest for the Eighth Congressional District, where candidates raised about $13.6 million. Incumbent Democrat Kim Schrier won that race.
Washington state Legislature
The race for Washington State House of Representatives 17th District Position 1 seat saw significantly less funding than in past contests. Republican Kevin Waters came out on top in both the November election and in fundraising with about $153,000, according to Public Disclosure Commission data. His competitor, Democrat Terri Niles, raised about $55,000.
The total raised is less than half of 2020’s contest, where Democratic challenger Tanisha Harris raised about $368,000. Tanisha Harris ended up losing to incumbent Republican Vicki Kraft, who raised roughly $113,000 for that election.
The seat has a history of six-figure fundraising by both candidates, going as high as about $610,000 for both seat-seekers in 2014.
More money was raised for the district’s companion seat in the House. Incumbent Republican Paul Harris raised roughly $210,000 to Democrat challenger Joe Kear’s roughly $35,000.
That total was the most Paul Harris had ever raised for an election, which ranged from about $78,000 in 2010 to roughly $128,000 in 2020.
Both races for open House seats representing Washington’s 18th Legislative District raised six-figure totals. For position 1, new state Rep. Stephanie McClintock raised more than $142,000. The Republican outraised her Democratic challenger John Zingale in the last weeks of the election, with Zingale ending at close to $124,000.
For position 2, the winner of the district’s other open seat contest also raised the most funds. Republican and new state Rep. Greg Cheney raised about $174,000 for the 2022 election, while Democrat Duncan Camacho raised about $105,000.
Expensive county races for sheriff, county council seats
Money flowed into a few races in Clark County at levels not seen in prior years.
In the race for Clark County sheriff, John Horch received the most votes and raised the highest amount. The new sheriff and former chief criminal deputy raised about $161,000, while Vancouver Police Cpl. Rey Reynolds raised about $77,000.
Horch raised a record-breaking amount among sheriff’s candidates, according to records from the Public Disclosure Commission, which go back to 2007.
Candidates in the race for Clark County Council’s newest district raised the highest amounts among the three council seats that were up for election. For the District 5 race, Don Benton raised about $125,000, while Sue Marshall raised roughly $91,000.
Though Benton had the most funding, Marshall took the District 5 seat in the November election. It was the most expensive county council race since David Madore raised $260,000 for an unsuccessful bid at the newly-created Clark County Council chair position in 2015.
In the race for the District 2 seat on the Clark County Council, Chartisha Roberts raised about $62,000 for the seat, but lost in the election to new councilor Michelle Belkot who raised roughly $40,000.
For the council District 1’s open seat, new councilor Glen Yung raised about $54,000 to competitor Hector Hinojosa’s roughly $33,000.
Outside of the sheriff and county council races, the only other competitive county-level race also followed District 1’s trend. Incumbent Clark County Auditor Greg Kimsey brought in about $73,000 during his successful re-election bid, more than Brett Simpson’s roughly $50,000.
