Voter turnout dips in WA compared to previous midterm

Fewer Washington state voters showed up for the Nov. 8 midterm compared to the election in 2018, according to the data reported on the Secretary of State’s website.

The data shows 64% of eligible voters in Washington state chose to cast their ballots in the 2022 midterm — less than the 72% voter turnout recorded four years ago.

Elections official talks turnout, election security, and midterm results

It’s also something Democrats had feared could spell doom for their own races, but most Democratic incumbents retained control across Washington state. Some candidates even outperformed expectations from the last polls before Election Day, like Marie Gluesenkamp Perez in the 3rd Congressional District against Joe Kent.

According to the turnout data, about 41,000 votes were “challenged,” or otherwise not accepted for a variety of reasons. Candidates in some of the state’s closest races are clinging to hope that some of these uncounted ballots may hold the key to their victory.

The race for the state’s 3rd Congressional District has been called by many media outlets, including the Associated Press, but Perez’s Republican challenger Joe Kent is trailing by under 3,000 votes and has pushed to have voters with rejected ballots make the necessary corrections to have them counted. The Trump-backed candidate is hoping that will be enough to trigger an automatic recount for the race, but he is raising money from supporters in preparation for a campaign-funded optional recount.

Here are the counties in Washington state that had the highest voter turnout:

• Adams County- 53.59%
• Asotin County- 61.74%
• Benton County- 61.01%
• Chelan County- 68.53%
• Clallam County- 71.68%
• Clark County- 64.39%
• Columbia County- 77.39%
• Cowlitz County- 63.63%
• Douglas County- 62.58%
• Ferry County- 67.03%
• Franklin County- 52.81%
• Garfield County- 78.96%
• Grant County- 57.34%
• Grays Harbor County- 62.25%
• Island County- 71.18%
• Jefferson County- 78.24%
• King County- 65.83%
• Kitsap County- 67.15%
• Kittitas County- 70.95%
• Klickitat County- 72.96%
• Lewis County- 67.04%
• Lincoln County- 75.88%
• Mason County- 67.95%
• Okanogan County- 65.77%
• Pacific County- 72.09%
• Pend Oreille County- 64.37%
• Pierce County- 61.03%
• San Juan County- 78.56%
• Skagit County- 67.79%
• Skamania County- 69.56%
• Snohomish County- 64.02%
• Spokane County- 62.56%
• Stevens County- 67.36%
• Thurston County- 65.17%
• Wahkiakum County- 75.26%
• Walla Walla County- 66.14%
• Whatcom County- 71.23%
• Whitman County- 69.04%
• Yakima County- 49.98%

Garfield County had the highest turnout at almost 78%.

Turnout in King County was slightly higher than the state average at 65%.

The lowest was in Yakima County at just under half.

For more results, visit the Secretary of State’s page.

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