Closely watched U.S. House 3rd District race in Washington is too close to call

It was one of the most closely watched races in the nation. In Washington’s third congressional district, a rematch between incumbent Democrat Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez and Republican Joe Kent is still too close to call.

The results of the race could determine control of the U.S. House of Representatives, where Republicans currently hold a narrow majority. Both parties poured millions into the race.

Gluesenkamp Perez currently leads Kent 52% to 48%, published numbers from the state report. Nearly 300,000 votes have been counted in the race.

Gluesenkamp Perez hoped her voting record over the past two years would show bipartisanship. However, Kent claimed her record showed an endorsement of wasteful government spending and too little action on immigration and the economy.

“The number one driver of this inflation is out-of-control spending in Washington, D.C.,” Kent said previously.

Where the Washington 3rd District candidates stand on key issues

Gluesenkamp Perez said she has spent the last two years encouraging more education in the trades and bringing federal money to southwest Washington.

When it comes to abortion, Gluesenkamp Perez said the decision belonged to families and their health care providers, while Kent said he supports the U.S. Supreme Court turning the issue over to the states, a shift from his position in 2022, when he favored a national abortion ban.

“Getting out and talking to people, I realize that people don’t share my exact view,” Kent said. “I think the Supreme Court saying that, ‘Hey, this is a divisive issue, we’re gonna take it out of the federal government’s purview, we’re gonna put it back down at the states,’ I think that’s actually the right call.”

Kent told KGW-TV that he will never support a national abortion ban.

On foreign policy, the two agree on assisting Israel but have different views on the U.S. should be involved.

“I think that it’s critical that we support the only liberal democracy in the Middle East and ensure that our reputation is upheld,” Gluesenkamp Perez said in a discussion on KGW before the election. “That is our national interest.” She broke with other Democrats this year to support aid to Israel.

Kent argued that while the U.S. should support Israel, it should be done from a distance.

“U.S. boots should not be on the ground inside Israel,” he said. “Putting boots on the ground is essentially an act of war because what happens when an Iranian ballistic missile hits them, or one of the proxy groups hits them? Then next thing you know, we’re at war that no one voted for.”

Gluesenkamp Perez is co-chair of the centrist Blue Dog Coalition. Her views countered Kent’s conservative stance by focusing on local issues and bipartisan cooperation.

Kent rallied with high-profile Republicans, Gluesenkamp Perez focused on addressing local issues like roadchoke points and the closure of a Veterans Affairs clinic.

Gluesenkamp Perez’s approach reflected her belief that most Americans agree on common sense issues.

Bill Kaczaraba is a content editor at MyNorthwest. You can read his stories here. Follow Bill on X, formerly known as Twitter, here and email him here.