U.S. Representative
Election Results
| Candidate | Votes | Pct |
|---|---|---|
| Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R) | 175,422 | 54.76% |
| Lisa Brown (D) | 144,925 | 45.24% |
* 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
The Candidates
Cathy McMorris Rodgers
- Party:
- Republican
- Age:
- 55
- City:
- Spokane, Washington
- Occupation:
- U.S. congresswoman
Education: Graduated from the Columbia River Christian Academy, Kettle Falls, in 1986. Earned pre-law bachelor’s degree from Pensacola Christian College in 1990 and executive MBA from the University of Washington in 2002.
Political experience: Appointed to state House of Representatives, serving the 7th Legislative District, in 1993. Elected to state House in 1994, where she served until joining Congress. Elected to Congress in 2004. Former Vice Chair of House Republican Conference. Elected chairwoman of House Republican Conference in 2013. Serves as ranking member of the House's Energy and Commerce Committee since 2021.
Work experience: Aide to state representative, 1990-93. Worked at her family orchard and fruit stand for 13 years, prior to election to Congress.
Family: Married. Has three young children.
Lisa Brown
- Party:
- Democratic
- Age:
- 68
- City:
- Spokane, Washington
Education: Graduated from Robinson High School in Illinois in 1974. Graduated from the University of Illinois in 1978 with a bachelor’s degree in economics. Graduated from the University of Colorado in 1986 with a doctorate in economics.
Work experience: Chancellor of Washington State University Spokane from 2013-17. Associate professor of Leadership Studies at Gonzaga University from 2001-2012. Assistant and associate professor of economics at Eastern Washington University from 1981-2001. As a young adult, worked in fast food restaurants and bookstores, as well as a summer working at the Marathon oil refinery where her dad worked. Formerly served on the boards of YWCA, Spokane Neighborhood Action Partners, Greater Spokane Incorporated, the University District Public Development Authority and Innovate Washington.
Political experience: State Department of Commerce from 2019 to early 2023. Ran unsuccessfully for Congress in 2018, losing to U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers. Elected as a state representative for the 3rd Legislative District, serving from 1993-96. Elected a state senator of the 3rd District, serving from 1997-2012. Served as Senate Majority Leader from 2008-2012.
Family: Married to Brian McClatchey. Has one adult son and one grandson.
Political donations: Reported raising about $464,000 as of Oct. 16, including major donations from the Washington state Democratic Central Committee, the Spokane Tribe of Indians, unions including the Laborers International Union of North America Local 238, and the Denny Heck for Congress campaign. Other notable contributors include former Spokane Mayor John Powers.
Related Media
Complete Coverage
Lisa Brown picked by Inslee to lead state Commerce Department
Lisa Brown named director of the state Department of Commerce.
Local lawmakers see end to shutdown with Trump announcement, remain at odds on wall funding
While lawmakers on both sides of the aisle said they hoped the deal would ease the suffering for the state’s thousands of federal workers, they do not see eye-to-eye on the need for greater security at the U.S./Mexico border, the issue that could plunge the country back into a shutdown in mid-February.
Thousands turn out for Spokane march honoring MLK
Two-and-a-half-year-old Aveline Jones plodded in her yellow shoes, pink pants and black coat with her hand firmly in her mother’s grasp Monday as they joined about 3,000 other marchers to celebrate the life and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.
McMorris Rodgers: ‘No one benefits’ from shutdown, parties should deal on immigration and border security
The congresswoman told reporters Friday that the partial government shutdown, now concluding its fourth week, provided an opportunity for lawmakers to strike a deal on border security and immigration reform, even as party leaders in Washington D.C. appear far apart on a compromise.
McMorris Rodgers: End the shutdown with a new deal on border security and DACA
Congress and the president should reopen the government by striking a new deal on border security and DACA, U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers said. But the Senate should vote again on the deal it approved just last month to end a reckless shutdown, Sen. Patty Murray said.
Experts say ‘national emergency’ for border wall probably wouldn’t survive legal challenge
It’s unclear how Congress, as a whole, would respond if President Donald Trump declares a national emergency in order to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, an idea he and his advisers began floating on Friday.
Top of the page: The 5 biggest news stories of 2018
Here are five major news stories that made a splash – in some cases immediately, in others over weeks and months – this past year in and around Spokane.
Spokane native and NFL star Steve Gleason recommended for Congressional Gold Medal
The House of Representatives gives unanimous approval to honoring Spokane native Steve Gleason with Congressional Gold Medal.
House passes farm bill, sending it to Trump’s desk
The House easily passed a compromise farm bill Wednesday, sending the massive legislative package that reauthorizes agriculture programs and food aid to President Donald Trump for ratification.
Ballots not cast can still sway elections
Despite near-record turnout for the midterm, tens of thousands of Spokane County voters didn’t vote and that has implications for future elections.
Current and former political actors share memories, praise of George H.W. Bush
Politicians and political workers from around Washington and Idaho wrote and spoke about George H.W. Bush, the 41st President of the United States, who died on Saturday at age 94.
Citing medical records project, Mann-Grandstaff VA delays 24-hour urgent care to 2020
The promised 24-hour urgent care at Mann-Grandstaff VA Medical Center has lost its urgency with the challenge of the hospital becoming the pilot project for the U.S. Department of Veterans Veterans Affairs’ $10 billion effort to update its electronic medical records, the new VA director said.
City Council President Ben Stuckart calls email about removing campaign signs ‘a joke’
The email exchange was posted online on the local Republican Party’s Facebook page earlier this month and prompted calls for discipline after City Council President Ben Stuckart suggested “a midnight mission” to remove an illegally placed Cathy McMorris Rodgers campaign sign. Stuckart said those calls are politically motivated ahead of his campaign for the mayor’s office.
Lisa Brown reflects on Congressional campaign, says she won’t run for Spokane mayor
The one bright spot for Lisa Brown in a decisive defeat by Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers on Tuesday was the City of Spokane, where she earned a double-digit victory. Still, Brown says she’s going to take a break to examine her options and said the future of the Democratic Party looks bright in Eastern Washington.
Shawn Vestal: McMorris Rodgers rode Eastern Washington’s red tide to victory
It wasn’t a wave, it was the tide. The regular, recurrent tide.
Cathy McMorris Rodgers won’t run for House Republican leadership position
U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers announced Tuesday that she will not run for a party leadership position in House.
Analysis: Why ‘a real race’ in Cathy McMorris Rodgers, Lisa Brown contest offered familiar November result
Democrats said they couldn’t match the fervor from energized Republicans in Eastern Washington that led to a comfortable GOP win in the district, despite rumors of a “blue wave.” Republicans credited an exhaustive ground game after a close primary night and increased attention after the Supreme Court hearings this fall.
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers wins eighth term with decisive victory over Democrat Lisa Brown
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers and Lisa Brown have been battling unofficially for more than a year in one of several contests nationwide that Democrats hope will shift control of Congress.
2018 Election Day 4 p.m. Update
Here’s a preview of what to be on the lookout for as polls close in Washington and Idaho in the next few hours. KHQ’s Claire Graham, Joe McHale, Stephanie Stevenson and The Spokesman-Review’s Kip Hill and Jim Camden report.
2018 Election Day 5 p.m. Update
KHQ’s Joe McHale reports on Election Day vandalism at Lisa Brown’s campaign headquarters, Stephanie Stevenson reports on last-minute ballot pickups around Spokane, Kevin Kim is down at the Elections Office, which is seeing one of the busiest elections in recent history, Claire Graham looks at some of the bond measures and advisory votes on the ballot, Adam Mayer reports from Boise and Spokesman-Review reporter Kip Hill looks at Brown’s year-long campaign against Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers while Jim Camden looks at statewide ballot initiatives.