Washington AG to face off against ex-sheriff from Green River Killer case in governor’s race

Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson (D) and former Rep. Dave Reichert (R) advanced from the state’s nonpartisan gubernatorial primary Tuesday, Decision Desk HQ projects. 

The longtime Democratic attorney general and the Republican ex-lawmaker are vying to replace retiring Gov. Jay Inslee (D), who announced last year that he wouldn’t seek a fourth term.

Inslee’s exit made way for the first open race for the governor’s mansion in years, and the contest drew a crowded field of candidates from both sides of the aisle.

Ferguson has served as the state’s top attorney for more than a decade and reportedly raised more than $8 million for his gubernatorial bid, easily besting the other contenders. He also nabbed Inslee’s endorsement to succeed him.

Reichert was a sheriff before he jumped into the lower chamber, and garnered attention for helping catch the “Green River Killer,” a serial killer responsible for deaths in Washington state in the 1980s and 1990s. He’s said he’d prioritize public safety as governor, pointing to his time in law enforcement.

Washington is considered a reliably blue state, and it last voted for a Republican governor in 1980. Still, some polls have shown the duo just a few points apart in hypothetical head-to-heads. The nonpartisan election handicapper Cook Political Report rates the seat as “lean Democratic.” 

Both Ferguson and Reichert advance from Tuesday’s contest under Washington state’s open primary system, in which voters do not have to declare a party affiliation to cast their ballots, and the top-two vote-getters move forward regardless of party.