{"id":6514,"date":"2026-08-05T04:30:07","date_gmt":"2026-08-05T04:30:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/?p=6514"},"modified":"2026-08-05T04:30:08","modified_gmt":"2026-08-05T04:30:08","slug":"democrat-marie-gluesenkamp-perez-survives-washingtons-crowded-primary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/?p=6514","title":{"rendered":"Democrat Marie Gluesenkamp Perez survives Washington\u2019s crowded primary"},"content":{"rendered":"<div data-gu-name=\"media\" class=\"dcr-14sl0e4\">\n<div class=\"dcr-17l77cs\">\n<figure id=\"9b1e2b34-a4b7-4a25-b600-d077d1bd4334\" class=\"dcr-191xnya\">\n<div id=\"img-1\" class=\"dcr-1t7hdmw\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"a woman speaks into a microphone\" src=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/615caef73ab3d05d1a13722530582b7d9fe014be\/263_0_6349_5078\/master\/6349.jpg?width=465&amp;dpr=1&amp;s=none&amp;crop=none\" width=\"465\" height=\"371.91211214364466\" loading=\"eager\" class=\"dcr-up96pv\"><span class=\"dcr-kogzpx\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-18mnkpm\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1294qmb\"><label for=\"the-checkbox\" class=\"dcr-4sl2vt\"><\/label> <\/p>\n<div id=\"the-caption\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1mfxiaj\"><span class=\"dcr-13i4yc9\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1cipnsy\">Marie Gluesenkamp Perez speaks during a town hall at Centralia College on 22 April 2025, in Centralia, Washington.<\/span> Photograph: Lindsey Wasson\/AP<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><a href=\"#img-1\" data-ignore=\"global-link-styling\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-zwabc0\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><button data-element-id=\"9b1e2b34-a4b7-4a25-b600-d077d1bd4334\" type=\"button\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-1bitgpn\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><span class=\"dcr-1shbixy\">View image in fullscreen<\/span><\/button><\/a><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"dcr-qda0hp\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1e9iiy9\"><span class=\"dcr-13i4yc9\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1cipnsy\">Marie Gluesenkamp Perez speaks during a town hall at Centralia College on 22 April 2025, in Centralia, Washington.<\/span> Photograph: Lindsey Wasson\/AP<\/figcaption><\/span><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"headline\" class=\"dcr-ql9l8l\">\n<div class=\"dcr-6mja0y\">\n<h1 class=\"dcr-l0wuod\">Democrat Marie Gluesenkamp Perez survives Washington\u2019s crowded primary<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"standfirst\" class=\"dcr-1xpojbf\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1gm5ptv\">\n<p>Two-term Democrat faced attacks from the left and right while defending a House seat in a territory Trump won<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"body\" class=\"dcr-x1al2c\">\n<div class=\"dcr-11gq2tx\">\n<div id=\"maincontent\" class=\"dcr-1w2vkyc\">\n<div class=\"article-body-commercial-selector article-body-viewer-selector dcr-ogvvui\">\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">The Democratic representative Marie Gluesenkamp Perez secured one of two spots in the state of Washington\u2019s crowded, all-party primary, overcoming criticism from both the left and the right to advance in one of November\u2019s most closely watched <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/us-congress\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">US congressional<\/a> races.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">The two-term Democrat \u2013 known for bucking her party on key issues \u2013 heads into the general election as she seeks to defend a district carried by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/donaldtrump\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">Donald Trump<\/a> in 2024 and a district that remains central to the battle for control of the House of Representatives.She will face the Republican state senator John Braun in November.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Gluesenkamp Perez faced competing ideological pressures in a crowded field that included Braun, the GOP establishment\u2019s preferred candidate, and progressive Democrat Brent Hennrich, who mounted a challenge from the left, arguing the US congresswoman had drifted too far from the Democratic party. Six other candidates also appeared on the primary ballot. Under Washington\u2019s primary system, the top two finishers advance regardless of party.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Gluesenkamp Perez entered the race as an incumbent with a distinctive political profile. Since flipping the Republican-held seat in 2022, she has built support among moderates, independents and some Republican voters, often emphasizing her background as the co-owner of an auto repair shop and breaking with her party on high-profile issues such as immigration, transgender rights and Trump\u2019s elections overhaul bill, known as the Save Act.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">That approach, however, increasingly alienated parts of her own party. Progressive critics argued she has too often sided with the president and Republicans, while supporters countered that her willingness to stake out opposing views reflected the realities of a district that has consistently backed Trump for president, most recently by <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/projects\/election-results-2024\/washington\/?r=0\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">about three points<\/a>. They argue that ideological purity is less important than maintaining a foothold in Trump territory \u2013 and a seat that could ultimately help deliver Democrats the House majority in November.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">In 2024, Gluesenkamp Perez ran roughly<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/elections\/results\/2024\/11\/05\/washington-house-district-3\/\" data-link-name=\"in body link\"> seven points ahead<\/a> of Kamala Harris, her party\u2019s presidential nominee.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Democrats hope Trump\u2019s poor approval ratings, and frustration with the economy and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/us-israel-war-on-iran\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">US-Israel war on Iran<\/a>, will help propel them to power in Congress by winning control of the House and possibly even the Senate.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-print-layout=\"hide\" class=\"dcr-swayiu\"><span class=\"dcr-1xhbmzr\">Explore more on these topics<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-2c03t5\">\n<ul class=\"dcr-p7nd18\">\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/us-midterm-elections-2026\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">US midterm elections 2026<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/washington-state\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">Washington state<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/us-politics\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">US politics<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/democrats\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">Democrats<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/republicans\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">Republicans<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/tone\/news\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">news<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dcr-313bdz\"><a href=\"mailto:?subject=Democrat%20Marie%20Gluesenkamp%20Perez%20survives%20Washington%E2%80%99s%20crowded%20primary&amp;body=https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/aug\/04\/marie-gluesenkamp-perez-washington-primary-election?CMP=share_btn_url\" class=\"dcr-ncybeu\">Share<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-19bkree\"><a data-link-name=\"meta-syndication-article\" href=\"https:\/\/syndication.theguardian.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Fus-news%2F2026%2Faug%2F04%2Fmarie-gluesenkamp-perez-washington-primary-election&amp;type=article&amp;internalpagecode=us-news\/2026\/aug\/04\/marie-gluesenkamp-perez-washington-primary-election\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\" title=\"Reuse this content\" class=\"dcr-1c41onw\">Reuse this content<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"right-column\" class=\"dcr-1kq7f60\"><span class=\"dcr-1ryr20k\"><\/span><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Marie Gluesenkamp Perez speaks during a town hall at Centralia College on 22 April 2025, in Centralia, Washington.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":6516,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6514","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-us-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6514","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6514"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6514\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6517,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6514\/revisions\/6517"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6516"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6514"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6514"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6514"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}