Randall the top choice among Democrats in 6th District primary

State Sen. Emily Randall is the leading the primary for Washington’s 6th Congressional District, based on initial results released after ballot boxes closed Tuesday, leading a Republican challenger and fellow Democrat Hilary Franz in the race to replace U.S. Rep. Derek Kilmer.

As of Tuesday, Randall carries 33.3% of the vote. State Sen. Drew MacEwan of Union, the top Republican, has 30.5% and finished the evening in second place. Both lead Franz, the state commissioner of public lands, who sits at 25.66%.

Election officials will continue counting ballots before certifying the election on Aug. 20. As of Tuesday, 52% of ballots have been counted, according to the Associated Press. The top two candidates, regardless of party, will advance to the General Election in November.

In a statement released shortly after the results, Randall said she is encourage by what the early counts show and remains hopeful she'll advance to the General Election.

"Since we launched our campaign last fall, I’ve been overwhelmed and overjoyed by the outpouring of grassroots support from across the 6th Congressional District," she said. "I will continue to campaign hard over the next few months as I work to keep the 6th District in Democratic hands, make history as the first queer Latina member of Congress, and keep delivering results for regular, working people."

The 6th Congressional District — spanning the Kitsap and Olympic Peninsula plus a large swath of Tacoma — has not elected a Republican to Congress in six decades. The nonpartisan Cook Political Report ranks the District as “Solid Democrat,” and “uncompetitive.” That made for a competitive intra-party contest between the pair of Democrats, with the eventual winner becoming the heavy favorite in a head-to-head race with MacEwen.

Live Results: See primary election totals for legislative districts and statewide races

In a phone call Tuesday, MacEwen, said he was pleased to be moving on and looked forward demonstrating his policy differences with Randall.

"Throughout this campaign I have heard from voters time and again that this economy is not working for them," he said in a statement. "We need to stabilize the economy so working families can meet their needs. Further, we must reform our immigration system and put significant resources into our shipyards and military personnel in this time of global unrest. My experience will help lead the way in Congress to address these issues and deliver results for Washingtonians.”

Both Democrats, who share similar views on most issues and split major endorsements, raised over $1 million in campaign donations, according to the latest FEC filings. MacEwen raised $153,000.

The race was ignited by the sudden retirement of Rep. Derek Kilmer, D-Gig Harbor, who after over a decade in office announced he would not seek another term. Franz, who was campaigning for governor at the time, swiftly changed course. She filed to replace Kilmer; He endorsed her.

In a text message, Franz's said in the face of unprecedented outside spending, they knew they "faced an uphill climb.

"Out-of-state Super PACs spent over $2.4 million to buy this seat," she said. "Today, thanks to the incredible work of our volunteers and supporters – including over 40 unions, Tribes, and firefighters across the district – this race is too close to call."

Franz has served as the state public lands commissioner since 2017, overseeing six million acres of public land and leading the state’s wildfire response. She is also a former Bainbridge Island City Councilmember.

Randall also filed for the seat shortly after Kilmer’s announcement. She was first elected to the state senate in 2018, representing the 26th district, which includes part of Bremerton plus Port Orchard and Gig Harbor.

Two unions representing state Department of Natural Resources Employees, the office Franz oversees as head of public lands, have endorsed Randall. In interviews with the Seattle Times, 15 current and former DNR employees accused Franz of irresponsibly using her office to further her political aspirations.

Meanwhile, Franz has attacked Randall for benefiting from outside spending. A PAC funded by cryptocurrency billionaires spent almost $1.5 million on ads supporting Randall. In a since deleted video, Franz said that it was “the darkest money support, which is more outside spending than this district has ever seen,” KUOW Reported. Those funds were spent independently of Randall’s campaign.

This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: Washington 6th Congressional District primary election results