DEMOCRAT HOUSE INCUMBENTS CRUSHING REPUBLICAN CHALLENGERS IN FUNDRAISING



GOP Hopes for Turning the Peninsula Red Face Money Problems



By Jim Scarantino



Inspired by the historic victory of Republican Jim Walsh in the 19th Legislative District, the Washington House Republican Caucus has visions of the rest of the Olympic Peninsula turning red.  Democrats with the advantage of incumbency stand in the way, armed with a huge cash advantage.

Republican Jim McEntire, a former Clallam County Commissioner, is challenging four-term incumbent Democrat Steve Tharinger for the
Steve Tharinger
24th District Position 2 seat in the House of Representatives.  McEntire failed in 2010 to beat Tharinger in the Democrat’s inaugural run for the legislature.  Tharinger is also a former Clallam County Commissioner and chairs the powerful House budget committee.


Jodi Wilke, a nurse, is in her first political run against incumbent Mike Chapman for the other 24th District seat in the Legislature.  We reported on that contest here.



The 24th includes Jefferson, Clallam and part of Grays Harbor counties.  Republicans hope to repeat what happened in 2016 in Grays Harbor County in the rest of the 24th.



The 19th Goes Red



In 2016, despite a $100,000 fundraising disadvantage, Republican Jim Walsh upset incumbent Democrat Teresa Purcell.  He was the first Republican elected in the 19th since the mid-1980s.
Jim Walsh




The economic struggles of the area helped him over the top.  And then there was Trump.



The 19th covers parts of Grays Harbor, Lewis, Cowlitz, Pacific and Wahkiakum Counties.



Three of those counties—Grays Harbor, Pacifc and Cowlitz—voted for Trump.  Trump’s victory in Grays Harbor was the first Republican win there since Herbert Hoover.  



 Republicans see the 24th District suffering the same symptoms that turned the 19th red:  unemployment higher than national and state levels, low incomes, lack of job opportunities, a sense that their needs are being ignored in Olympia and Washington, and resentment against Seattle elites.



Clallam does elect Republicans.  Jefferson has not for decades.  By most measures, it is the third most liberal county in the state after King and San Juan.  But the taxpayer revolt that soundly defeated Prop 1, a property tax increase to fund housing programs, has given Republicans some hope.  They aim to peel off enough Jefferson County votes outside of Port Townsend to keep the liberal, high-voting enclave from deciding the race.



The absence of a Trump effect in Clallam and Jefferson counties does not bode well for GOP hopes.  Trump lost Clallam.  In Jefferson he could not garner even 30% of the vote.  



Money Woes for GOP Challengers



Tharinger currently holds a war chest of about $52,000 in cash.  McEntire has raised only $17,600 and has already spent $11,400, according to the latest Public Disclosure Commission data.  



McEntire has raised 2/3 of his funds from individuals. The House

Republican caucus has kicked in $5,000.
Jim McEntire



Tharinger’s contributions show the advantages of a four-term incumbency and chairmanship of the powerful budget committee.  He started with $16,000 in the bank and has raised $36,000 for this race.  Less than a third of those contributions come from individuals.  More than a third comes from political action committees, with most of the rest from businesses and $3,100 from unions.



Tharinger has spent only $1,000.  He has barely begun campaigning. 



In our previous report on the Chapman-Wilke race, we reported how Chapman has been piling up a huge number of endorsements and held a 3-to-1 fundraising advantage.  We understated that advantage by
Mike Chapman
omitting what he had in the bank at the start.  Based on current PDC data, Chapman has available about $54,000 in cash.  He also has barely begun his campaign.



Chapman’s opponent, Wilke, has raised $15,000, and already spent $8,000. 



The House Republican Caucus has yet to contribute anything to her campaign.



Jodi Wilke
Right now, McEntire and Wilke are quite visible and active.  Their signs are already up and they are busy with campaign events and appearances across the district.  They have not faced much competition for the spotlight. That will change when Tharinger and Chapman hit the trail and start spending their piles of campaign cash.







  

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