A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
One of the few competitive governors races this year is in Washington, a state that's no stranger to tight campaigns for the top job. From member station KUOW, here's Jeanie Lindsay.
JEANIE LINDSAY, BYLINE: Republicans in Washington state nearly snapped their decadeslong losing streak for the governor's office the last two times the job was wide open when an incumbent was leaving office. The state made national headlines in 2004 for one of the tightest governors' races in U.S. history. The Republican in the race was even certified as the winner at first, but ultimately lost after multiple recounts and months of turmoil in the courts. Here's part of NPR's coverage at the time.
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MARTIN KASTE: Democrat Christine Gregoire emerged with a 129-vote lead, that out of nearly 3 million votes cast.
LINDSAY: In the next open race, the Republican candidate lost by just three percentage points. Fast forward to this year, and the Democratic candidate, Attorney General Bob Ferguson, told his fellow party members at their state convention...
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BOB FERGUSON: I know it's easy to think, hey, Washington's a blue state, right?
LINDSAY: ...That history may repeat itself.
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FERGUSON: This campaign will be close, and I'm going to need your help to win this campaign.
LINDSAY: This year's GOP candidate Dave Reichert is well-known in the state. He's a former Congressman.
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DAVE REICHERT: I'm just a guy that grew up in the Renton Highlands. I have dyslexia, barely graduated from high school.
LINDSAY: And talks a lot about his time as King County sheriff.
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REICHERT: Public safety, No. 1.
LINDSAY: But this year's race stands apart from past ones. For starters, there's less money coming in overall, and Reichert is being majorly outspent by his Democratic opponent and allies. Unlike past close races, GOP support for Reichert is also split. Ahead of the primary, the state's Republican Party endorsed a different candidate over Reichert, one more aligned with Donald Trump. Reichert has distanced himself from the former president. And time is running out for candidates to make their case. Voting in Washington starts this week.
For NPR News, I'm Jeanie Lindsay in Olympia.
(SOUNDBITE OF DREAM CIRCLES' "A CURTAIN OF FOG") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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