 | |||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||
 County results Congressional district resultsDavidson: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% | |||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||
The2016 Washington State Treasurer election was held on November 8, 2016, to elect theWashington State Treasurer, concurrently with the2016 U.S. presidential election, as well aselections to theU.S. Senate and variousstate and local elections, including forU.S. House andgovernor of Washington. Washington is one of two states that holds atop-two primary, meaning that all candidates are listed on the same ballot regardless of party affiliation, and the top two move on to the general election.
IncumbentDemocratic State TreasurerJames McIntire announced on December 16, 2015, that he would not seek a third term.[1]RepublicanBenton County TreasurerDuane Davidson won the election, defeating fellow Republican Michael Waite.[2] This was the first time a Republican had been elected to the office of Treasurer of Washington since 1952.[3]
The top-two primary was held on August 2.
Newspapers
Five candidates ran in the primary: state senatorMarko Liias, former Port of Seattle commissioner Alec Fisken, pension consultant John Paul Comerford, Benton County treasurerDuane Davidson, and investment firm executive Michael Waite.[4] Liias, Fisken, and Comerford ran as Democrats; Davidson and Waite, as Republicans.[4] Davidson and Waite, both Republicans, finished as the top two candidates in the primary election and advanced to the general election, marking the first time since the top-two system had been instituted that both of the primary slots in any statewide race had been won by Republicans.[6]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Duane Davidson | 322,374 | 25.09 | |
| Republican | Michael Waite | 299,766 | 23.33 | |
| Democratic | Marko Liias | 261,633 | 20.36 | |
| Democratic | John Paul Comerford | 230,904 | 17.97 | |
| Democratic | Alec Fisken | 170,117 | 13.24 | |
| Total votes | 1,284,794 | 100.00 | ||
Davidson received the endorsements of every county treasurer in Washington state, both Democratic and Republican.[8]
Statewide officials
Statewide officials
Newspapers
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Duane Davidson (R) | Michael Waite (R) | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elway Poll[10] | October 20–22, 2016 | 502 (RV) | ± 4.5% | 17% | 16% | 67% |
| Elway Poll[11] | August 9–13, 2016 | 500 (RV) | ± 4.5% | 16% | 16% | 68% |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Duane Davidson | 1,576,580 | 58.15 | |
| Republican | Michael Waite | 1,134,843 | 41.85 | |
| Total votes | 2,711,423 | 100.00 | ||
| Republicangain fromDemocratic | ||||
| County[13] | Duane Davidson Republican | Michael Waite Republican | Margin | Total votes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Adams | 2,466 | 61.02% | 1,575 | 38.98% | 891 | 22.05% | 4,041 |
| Asotin | 4,964 | 58.62% | 3,504 | 41.38% | 1,460 | 17.24% | 8,468 |
| Benton | 50,910 | 70.06% | 21,754 | 29.94% | 29,156 | 40.12% | 72,664 |
| Chelan | 14,996 | 54.04% | 12,755 | 45.96% | 2,241 | 8.08% | 27,751 |
| Clallam | 17,688 | 53.67% | 15,268 | 46.33% | 2,420 | 7.34% | 32,956 |
| Clark | 99,385 | 57.60% | 73,173 | 42.40% | 26,212 | 15.19% | 172,558 |
| Columbia | 1,251 | 65.50% | 659 | 34.50% | 592 | 30.99% | 1,910 |
| Cowlitz | 20,082 | 51.48% | 18,931 | 48.52% | 1,151 | 2.95% | 39,013 |
| Douglas | 7,468 | 56.33% | 5,790 | 43.67% | 1,678 | 12.66% | 13,258 |
| Ferry | 1,709 | 55.89% | 1,349 | 44.11% | 360 | 11.77% | 3,058 |
| Franklin | 13,253 | 63.75% | 7,535 | 36.25% | 5,718 | 27.51% | 20,788 |
| Garfield | 618 | 56.85% | 469 | 43.15% | 149 | 13.71% | 1,087 |
| Grant | 13,285 | 54.53% | 11,078 | 45.47% | 2,207 | 9.06% | 24,363 |
| Grays Harbor | 12,566 | 51.75% | 11,714 | 48.25% | 852 | 3.51% | 24,280 |
| Island | 20,594 | 56.16% | 16,079 | 43.84% | 4,515 | 12.31% | 36,673 |
| Jefferson | 10,305 | 61.34% | 6,496 | 38.66% | 3,809 | 22.67% | 16,801 |
| King | 490,359 | 60.70% | 317,475 | 39.30% | 172,884 | 21.40% | 807,834 |
| Kitsap | 56,508 | 53.30% | 49,511 | 46.70% | 6,997 | 6.60% | 106,019 |
| Kittitas | 9,635 | 60.77% | 6,219 | 39.23% | 3,416 | 21.55% | 15,854 |
| Klickitat | 5,443 | 60.00% | 3,629 | 40.00% | 1,814 | 20.00% | 9,072 |
| Lewis | 16,200 | 54.72% | 13,404 | 45.28% | 2,796 | 9.44% | 29,604 |
| Lincoln | 3,021 | 59.55% | 2,052 | 40.45% | 969 | 19.10% | 5,073 |
| Mason | 12,058 | 50.79% | 11,684 | 49.21% | 374 | 1.58% | 23,742 |
| Okanogan | 7,874 | 55.21% | 6,389 | 44.79% | 1,485 | 10.41% | 14,263 |
| Pacific | 4,744 | 54.06% | 4,032 | 45.94% | 712 | 8.11% | 8,776 |
| Pend Oreille | 3,413 | 58.19% | 2,452 | 41.81% | 961 | 16.39% | 5,865 |
| Pierce | 168,096 | 56.28% | 130,576 | 43.72% | 37,520 | 12.56% | 298,672 |
| San Juan | 4,583 | 56.66% | 3,506 | 43.34% | 1,077 | 13.31% | 8,089 |
| Skagit | 24,920 | 52.82% | 22,262 | 47.18% | 2,658 | 5.63% | 47,182 |
| Skamania | 2,753 | 58.71% | 1,936 | 41.29% | 817 | 17.42% | 4,689 |
| Snohomish | 165,574 | 55.24% | 134,147 | 44.76% | 31,427 | 10.49% | 299,721 |
| Spokane | 116,043 | 58.39% | 82,693 | 41.61% | 33,350 | 16.78% | 198,736 |
| Stevens | 11,514 | 58.05% | 8,320 | 41.95% | 3,194 | 16.10% | 19,834 |
| Thurston | 61,579 | 55.89% | 48,591 | 44.11% | 12,988 | 11.79% | 110,170 |
| Wahkiakum | 1,001 | 53.88% | 857 | 46.12% | 144 | 7.75% | 1,858 |
| Walla Walla | 13,379 | 61.08% | 8,526 | 38.92% | 4,853 | 22.15% | 21,905 |
| Whatcom | 60,564 | 64.72% | 33,011 | 35.28% | 27,553 | 29.44% | 93,575 |
| Whitman | 8,317 | 57.90% | 6,047 | 42.10% | 2,270 | 15.80% | 14,364 |
| Yakima | 37,462 | 56.03% | 29,395 | 43.97% | 8,067 | 12.07% | 66,857 |
| Totals | 1,576,580 | 58.15% | 1,134,843 | 41.85% | 441,737 | 16.29% | 2,711,423 |
One former state treasurer, Mike Murphy, told this board Davidson should have attended, and he's not endorsing Davidson this time, after endorsing him in 2016.
.jpg)
