Polls show her a few points ahead of Democrat Lisa Brown, a former state senate majority leader and university chancellor. In what has been called the “year of the woman,” McMorris Rodgers—the most prominent female elected Republican in the country—is facing a challenge from another high-profile female candidate. The race in former Democratic speaker Tom Foley’s old district will also serve as a referendum of sorts on President Trump, given McMorris Rodgers close ties to him, and on his tariffs, which are meeting skepticism in a district reliant on agriculture and the aerospace sector. And two potential missteps by McMorris Rodgers—one involving an attack ad many felt was unfair, and the other a fundraising visit by the controversial House intelligence committee chairman, Devin Nunes—have only added to the drama.
In one of Washington’s so-called “jungle primaries,” in which the top two vote getters win, regardless of party, McMorris Rodgers drew just over 49 percent of the vote, with Brown under four points behind her. A “Trump Populist” and two other Republicans took 5 percent between them. “The barometer I use is when an incumbent is below 50, they’ve got a problem,” says Ron Dotzauer, a veteran Democratic consultant based in Washington with a penchant for boss-of-the-plains hats.
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