Next year's midterm elections are top of mind for politicians. And the stakes are incredibly high, especially for our state's most competitive Congressional seat: Southwest Washington's 3rd district. While the district broke for Trump three times, it also sent Democrat Marie Gluesenkamp Perez to the U.S. House -- twice. But her challenger in 2026 will test whether voters support her unique politics or felt her previous opponent was just too extreme.

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible. If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundpoliticsnotes.

Sound Politics is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network. Our editor is Catharine Smith. Our producer is Hans Anderson. Our hosts are Libby Denkmann and Scott Greenstone.

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If your ballot was sitting on your counter waiting to be turned in, well, it's expired now. The primary election is past. Results, however, are coming in. This week we take a look at two different trends. At the city level, voters have an anti-incumbent bent, but in state legislative races, incumbent Democrats who voted for tax increases seem to (mostly) be okay.

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible. If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundpoliticsnotes.

Sound Politics is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network. Our editor is Catharine Smith. Our producer is Hans Anderson. Our hosts are Libby Denkmann and Scott Greenstone.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We're celebrating our first birthday as a show. And don't worry, it isn't going to be one of those awkward first birthday parties where you have to make small talk with strangers, because we're making small talk about the latest political news, including some recent polls that show voter discontent with new Governor Bob Ferguson. Plus, we break down some mayoral races before the primary and answer a listener question about the future of income taxes in Washington.

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/politics. Sound Politics is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network. Our editor is Catharine Smith. Our producer is Hans Anderson. Our hosts Catharine Smith and Libby Denkmann.

And we want to hear from you! Send us your politics questions by emailing soundpolitics@kuow.org or give us a call at 206-221-0511.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.