U.S. Senator
Election Results
| Candidate | Votes | Pct |
|---|---|---|
| Maria Cantwell (D) | 1,714,271 | 60.16% |
| Michael Baumgartner (R) | 1,135,453 | 39.84% |
* Race percentages are calculated with data from the Secretary of State's Office, which omits write-in votes from its calculations when there are too few to affect the outcome. The Spokane County Auditor's Office may have slightly different percentages than are reflected here because its figures include any write-in votes.
About the Race
Democratic incumbent Maria Cantwell coasted to the pole position in Washington’s top two primary but Republican challenger Michael Baumgartner, a state legislator from Spokane who captured the second-most votes and the final spot on the general election ballot, hasn’t let that deter him. The candidates are divided along fairly standard partisan lines.
U.S. senators serve six-year terms and paid $174,000 per year plus healthcare and other benefits.
The Candidates
Maria Cantwell
- Party:
- Democrat
- Age:
- 66
- City:
- Seattle, Washington
- Occupation:
- Senator
Education: Graduated from Emmerich Manual High School in Indianapolis, Indiana, in 1977. Earned a bachelor’s degree from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, in 1981.
Work experience: Worked as vice president of marketing and senior vice president of the consumer products division at Real Networks, a Seattle-based tech company, from 1995 to 2000.
Political experience: Elected to represent Washington’s 1st congressional district in 1992, serving one term before losing her re-election bid in 1994. Elected to the Senate in 2000 and re-elected in 2006, 2012 and 2018.
Family: Single, no children
Michael Baumgartner
- Party:
- Republican
- Age:
- 48
- City:
- Spokane, Washington
Education: Graduated from Pullman High School in 1995, after attending Gonzaga Prep for two years. Graduated from Washington State University in 1999 with a bachelor’s degree in economics. Graduated from Harvard University in 2002 with a master’s degree in public administration.
Work experience: Worked for office of the Crown Prince of Dubai as economic development adviser for about a year starting in June 2002. Worked two years starting in the spring of 2003 for i4, a company that hoped to build a telecommunication network in Saudi Arabia. Worked as Dubai-based business consultant for about a year. Worked as consultant for Hecla Mining related to gold mine in Venezuela for several months in 2006. Worked as economics officer for the U.S. State Department in Iraq for about a year starting in spring 2007. Worked for Civilian Police International, a State Department contractor, in Afghanistan on a counter-narcotics program for about eight months starting in December 2008. Provided pre-deployment advisory to U.S. military on counterinsurgency. Lecturer on counterinsurgency at Sciences Po University in Paris.
Political experience: Has served as Spokane County treasurer after winning election in 2018 and 2022. Previously elected to state Senate in 2010, unseating Democratic incumbent Chris Marr. Re-elected in 2014. Unsuccessfully challenged Democratic U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell in 2012. Previously served as vice chairman of Senate Ways and Means Committee and chairman of Commerce and Labor committee.
Family: Married to Eleanor Baumgartner. Has five children.
Complete Coverage
Fairchild on short list to get new tanker
Fairchild Air Force Base is one of several bases on a short list for receiving the nation’s newest air refueling tanker. The West Plains base is on a list the Air Force revealed today of possible locations for the first KC-46A refueling jets when they roll off the Boeing assembly lines later this decade.
`Fiscal cliff’ deal preserves sales tax deduction
U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell says the “fiscal-cliff” tax bill that passed the Senate early Wednesday includes the sales-tax deduction for taxpayers in Washington and a half-dozen other states.
Incumbents prevail
The Inland Northwest’s congressional delegation remained intact Tuesday, with incumbents coasting to victories in early returns. On the Washington side, voters gave new terms to Democratic U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell and Republican U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, of Spokane.
Last-minute election push is on
With five days left until Election Day, campaigns are shifting their focus from policy arguments to pleas for action. Candidates, meanwhile, are crisscrossing the state to make their final pitches.
Cantwell, Baumgartner exchange political jabs
SEATTLE – Republican Mike Baumgartner repeatedly criticized Sen. Maria Cantwell on Friday for “going to war on a credit card” in Iraq and Afghanistan, and called for a 1-cent-per-gallon tax on gasoline to help fund the troops. “The country has not gone to war,” Baumgartner said, trying to turn much of the only debate in Washington’s U.S. Senate campaign into a discussion about Afghanistan. The military, and their families, bear the brunt of the two conflicts, he said.
Doug Clark: Don’t weed anything into I-502 endorsement
Holy smokes! Did you catch last week’s herbal announcement from State Sen. Michael Bongartner?
Spin Control: Governor’s race drawing loads of out-of-state money
OLYMPIA – Close races usually mean big spending, and Washington’s gubernatorial race is no exception. Along with candidates Rob McKenna and Jay Inslee, who have a combined total of $18 million with one month left to raise and spend, outside groups have kicked in another $12 million thus far. The main sources of independent money are the Republican Governors Association and the Democratic Governors Association. These are not, as the casual observer might surmise, subdivisions of the National Governors Association, an organization which arranges regular meetings at which state chief executives can, in the words of Oz, hobnob with their fellow wizards.
U.S. Senate hopeful Baumgartner endorses marijuana initiative
The Republican challenger for a Washington U.S. Senate seat endorsed a ballot measure Wednesday that would legalize marijuana for personal use in the state. State Sen. Mike Baumgartner, R-Spokane, said it was time for a new approach to the nation’s drug policy, and called Initiative 502 a “thoughtful step forward.” Time spent as an adviser to a counternarcotics team in Afghanistan convinced him that drug cartels are gaining from the United States’ approach to criminalizing marijuana for adults, he added.
Politicians hail progress on corridor
It may be an election year, but Democrats and Republicans agreed on Tuesday that completion of the northern half of the North Spokane Corridor was a bipartisan accomplishment. U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., and U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Spokane, were joined by Spokane County GOP Commissioner Todd Mielke and state Rep. Andy Billig, D-Spokane. All are running for office this fall.