Washington state Democrat who flipped pro-Trump district faces tough primary

Representing Washington state’s third district, Gluesenkamp Perez finds herself squeezed between Democrat and progressive Brent Hennrich and Republican state senator John Braun on her right. There are six other candidates on a single crowded ballot and the top two finishers will advance to the November general election regardless of party.

Democrats are favored to win the House of Representatives in November’s midterm election, but highly contested seats like Gluesenkamp Perez’s will be crucial to securing a majority, and expanding the margin.

Republican Jaime Herrera Beutler won Washington’s third district in 2010 and held it for six terms, until Gluesenkamp Perez narrowly beat Trump-endorsed Joe Kent in 2022. Trump has carried the district in all three of his presidential runs, most recently by about three points, and yet in 2024 Gluesenkamp Perez ran roughly seven points ahead of her party’s presidential nominee.

Logging, mills, agriculture, shipping and manufacturing still shape daily life in much of the area and Gluesenkamp Perez’s success has stemmed from her appeal to moderates and rural voters. An auto repair shop owner, she won over many in south-west Washington, including Republicans who considered Kent too extreme.

“We like her a lot,” said Laura Oltmann, 41, a resident and supporter who describes herself as a conservative. Kent did not embody conservatism, Oltmann said.

But through Gluesenkamp Perez’s two terms, frustration has built among her own party, growing when Democrats saw her siding with Republicans on major legislation. Hennrich, who is challenging her in the primary, ran for the same seat in 2022 before standing down, but decided to run again. “I stepped out of this race to unify Democrats to help get Marie through, so we could get rid of our six-term incumbent, Jaime Herrera Beutler,” he said.

“[Gluesenkamp Perez] has turned out to be just an absolute epic failure for Democrats.”

Hennrich is not alone. Several local Democratic organizations inside the district have broken with her. “She ran as a Democrat and inspired a lot of people, and she won, and we thought she was going to be what we wanted her to be. But everybody’s disappointed,” said LaDonna Kirkpatrick, chair of the 18th Legislative District Democrats, speaking in a personal capacity.

Kirkpatrick traces that disappointment to Gluesenkamp Perez’s votes for the Save Act, Trump’s effort to overhaul elections, as well as for a bill restricting how public schools address gender identity, and federal funding tied to the war in Iran. She claims the congresswoman has also stopped talking to her own party’s local officers.

Thea Zahn, the chair of the 20th legislative district, agreed. “What majority are you going for?” she said. “Are you going for a majority that believes in Democratic values, or a majority that will fail over and over again when it comes down to it, when you really need people to stand up and say this is what we believe in?”

“If she gets to the primary, I will be one of them. I won’t vote for Marie. I will never vote for Marie Perez again,” Zahn added.

The congresswoman’s defenders make a different argument: that the district’s partisan lean leaves her little room, and that the seat matters more than any single vote.

“The reality is we live in a Republican district. It is Republican,” said Terri Niles, who chairs the 17th Legislative District Democrats and spoke in a personal capacity. “I’ve knocked on tens of thousands of doors.”

Niles argues that none of Gluesenkamp Perez’s contentious votes actually resulted in legislation passing, and that the calculation for Democrats is simpler than her critics allow. “The most important thing everybody should keep in mind is that flipping the House is our goal,” she said. “That should be the most important thing for every Democrat out there.”

The Democratic infighting comes at a precarious moment. An Emerson College poll conducted in mid-July for the Northwest Progressive Institute found Gluesenkamp Perez and Republican Braun tied. Braun, the Republican leader in the Washington senate, has become one of the GOP’s top congressional recruits, earning Donald Trump’s endorsement in April and the backing of the National Republican Congressional Committee.

“We could hand a truly 100% Maga candidate a congressional seat for life,” said Tim Probst, a local Democratic party leader. “Because once he gets in there, he’s not getting out.”