SEATTLE (AP) 鈥� One of the last remaining U.S. House Republicans who and a candidate endorsed by the former president have advanced in Tuesday鈥檚 primary to the general election in Washington state鈥檚 4th Congressional District.
U.S. Rep. Dan Newhouse is seeking a sixth term in the conservative Washington district that runs from the Canadian border to the Columbia River. He will face Republican Jerrod Sessler, a Navy veteran and former NASCAR driver, in November.
This was a from 2022, when Sessler earned a distant fourth in the primary. This time, Sessler said things have gone his way. He was endorsed by the Washington State Republican Party and nabbed Trump鈥檚 backing early on, which he called a 鈥済ame changer.鈥� He said he communicates regularly with Trump鈥檚 team, referencing a text he said he received from the GOP presidential candidate this year saying, 鈥淭he country is counting on you.鈥�
鈥淚n ninety days, this district is going to vote overwhelmingly for President Trump,鈥� Sessler said in a statement. 鈥淚 will work hard to make sure we also elect a member of Congress who will be his greatest ally in our fight to enact a pro-Constitution, pro-MAGA agenda and heal our nation from the disaster of the Biden-Harris administration.鈥�
Newhouse has mostly steered clear of the subject of Trump. The third-generation farmer has instead focused on agriculture and border security in a state with millions of acres of pastures, orchards and cereal grain lands where immigrant labor is extremely important.
In the lead-up to the primary, Newhouse鈥檚 opponents repeatedly touted his vote to impeach Trump as a huge liability. But political experts have cautioned that it鈥檚 difficult to say whether the endorsement will sway voters who already stuck with Newhouse two years ago.
Newhouse and U.S. , of California, are the only Republican Congressional lawmakers left among the 10 who voted to impeach Trump in 2021. Others retired or were defeated by Trump-endorsed primary challengers.
As of July 17, Newhouse, who was endorsed by the NRA and the National Right to Life, had raised $1.6 million 鈥� far more than the $409,000 raised by Sessler.
They prevailed over Tiffany Smiley, a former nurse who entered the race after losing to U.S. Sen. Patty Murray two years ago. She received a backing from Trump just three days before the primary, marking a unique, though not unprecedented, dual endorsement by the former president. But the backing for Smiley likely came too late to impact many voters in the vote-by-mail state.
Under the state鈥檚 primary system, the top two vote-getters in each of the contests advance to the November election, regardless of party.
Hallie Golden, The Associated Press
