Clear leads emerge in primary races
Published 1:30 am Tuesday, August 11, 2026
As votes are counted across the state, clear leads are coming into focus for Washington’s county, state and federal primary races.
Primary elections decide which candidates will appear on the general election ballot in November, with the top two candidates in each race advancing.
King County has counted 495,336 ballots as of Monday morning, according to King County Elections. Ballots that were postmarked on or before Aug. 4 are still viable, and the number of ballots received by the county may grow marginally in the coming days.
This primary election, Vashon Island had a turnout of 50.19% among registered voters as of Monday, according to King County Elections.
Election results update every day at 4 p.m. as counties across the state continue working to count ballots, but results are unofficial until the primary is certified on Aug. 18.
Here’s what the numbers are saying so far:
7th Congressional District race
In the race to represent Washington’s 7th Congressional District in the U.S. House, incumbent Pramila Jayapal and Nirav Sheth are set to face off in the November general election.
The latest results from King County Elections show Jayapal securing 84.45% of votes, an overwhelming lead ahead of the other three candidates on the ballot. The second most votes went to Sheth, who won 9.8% of the district’s votes, earning him a spot on the November ballot.
The other two candidates — Gwen Kirkland and David W. Blomstrom — earned only a slim margin of votes, and will not advance to the general election.
34th Legislative District races
In the unopposed race for State Senator representing the 34th Legislative District, incumbent candidate Emily Alvarado is leading with 97.34% of the vote, with remaining votes going towards write in candidates. Alvarado will advance to the general election where she is expected to win back the seat.
Incumbent candidate Brianna Thomas also ran unopposed in the race for House Position 1 representing the 34th Legislative District, and has won 97.27% of the primary votes so far. Thomas will also advance to the general election.
The only contested race in the district was between incumbent Joe Fitzgibbon and Mary Anito — who are both vying for Position 2 in the State House representing the 34th Legislative District.
According to the latest results from King County Elections, incumbent candidate Joe Fitzgibbon has emerged as the clear leader in the race, earning 74.7% of the district’s vote, compared to challenger Mary Anito’s 24%.
Both Fitzgibbon and Anito will advance to the general election as the only two candidates in the race.
State Supreme Court races
In the Washington Supreme Court Position 1 race, incumbent Colleen Melody and Scott Edwards are expected to advance to the general election.
According to the latest data from the Washington secretary of state’s office Melody has won the majority of the votes — 53.15%— while Edwards secured 29.15% of the vote. The third candidate, Laura Christensen Colberg, earned only 17.46% of the vote.
As of Monday morning, the Position 3 race is too close to call. The Washington secretary of state’s office reports that David Stevens has earned 34.93% of the vote — 25,121 votes ahead of Jaime Hawk. The margin between Hawk and Mike Diaz is slightly greater, with 32,304 separating the two candidates.
Theo Angelis and Dave Larson will likely advance to the general election in the Position 5 race. According to the Washington secretary of state’s office, Angelis leads with 36% while Larson has secured 31.94% of votes.
In the Position 7 race, Debra Stephens has emerged as a clear leader, with 54.67% of the vote. Todd Bloom’s 26.89% will put him on the November ballot with Stephens.
King County Council race
Incumbent Teresa Mosqueda is leading in the race to represent District 8 on the King County Council, and is set to advance to the general election. As of Thursday morning, Mosqueda had won 66.29% of votes according to King County Elections.
Nick Duda will likely face Mosqueda on the November ballot, securing the next most votes — 24.94% of votes.
King County Assessors race
Rob Foxcurran is expected to advance to the general election after winning 214,135 votes —46.9% of total votes counted so far, according to King County Elections.
It’s a tight race between the remaining three candidates — with a slim margin of votes separating the next three spots. As of Monday morning, Dominique Scarimbolo had the next most votes, followed by Chris Roberts and lastly, Al Dams.
