The 1988 United States Senate election in Washington was held on November 8, 1988. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Daniel J. Evans decided to retire instead of running for re-election to a full term, after being appointed to the seat in 1983, and won election to a partial term that same year. Republican former U.S. Senator Slade Gorton, who had just lost a re-election bid in 1986, won the open seat.[1] As of 2024, this is the last time Washington simultaneously voted for different parties for president and for senate, as Democrat Michael Dukakis won the state in the concurrent presidential election.
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November 8, 1988
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 County results Gorton: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% Lowry: 50–60% | |||||||||||||||||
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Mike Lowry, the Democratic nominee, would run successfully for Governor of Washington in 1992.
Blanket primary
editCandidates
editDemocratic
edit- Mike Lowry, U.S. Representative from Renton (1979–1989)
- Don Bonker, U.S. Representative from Vancouver (1975–1989)
Republican
edit- Slade Gorton, former U.S. Senator (1981–1987)
- Douglas J. Smith
Third-party
edit- William C. Goodloe (Washington Taxpayer), judge and lawyer
- Daniel B. Fein (Socialist Workers Party)
Results
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Slade Gorton | 335,846 | 35.90% | |
| Democratic | Mike Lowry | 297,399 | 31.79% | |
| Democratic | Don Bonker | 241,170 | 25.78% | |
| Republican | Douglas J. Smith | 31,512 | 3.37% | |
| Washington Taxpayers | William C. Goodloe | 26,224 | 2.80% | |
| Socialist Workers | Daniel B. Fein | 3,312 | 0.35% | |
| Total votes | 935,463 | 100.00% | ||
General election
editCandidates
edit- Mike Lowry (D), U.S. Congressman of the 7th congressional district (1979–1989)
- Slade Gorton (R), former U.S. Senator (1981–1987)
Results
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Slade Gorton | 944,359 | 51.09 | −4.32 | |
| Democratic | Mike Lowry | 904,183 | 48.91 | +4.32 | |
| Total votes | 1,848,542 | 100.00 | N/A | ||
| Republican hold | |||||
By county
edit| County[3] | Slade Gorton
Republican |
Mike Lowry
Democratic |
Margin | Total votes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Adams | 2,856 | 64.01% | 1,606 | 35.99% | 1,250 | 28.01% | 4,462 |
| Asotin | 3,195 | 48.64% | 3,373 | 51.36% | -178 | -2.71% | 6,568 |
| Benton | 35,986 | 80.81% | 8,547 | 19.19% | 27,439 | 61.61% | 44,533 |
| Chelan | 12,083 | 61.04% | 7,711 | 38.96% | 4,372 | 22.09% | 19,794 |
| Clallam | 11,738 | 51.09% | 11,235 | 48.91% | 503 | 2.19% | 22,973 |
| Clark | 40,518 | 51.98% | 37,435 | 48.02% | 3,083 | 3.95% | 77,953 |
| Columbia | 1,170 | 59.88% | 784 | 40.12% | 386 | 19.75% | 1,954 |
| Cowlitz | 13,502 | 47.45% | 14,955 | 52.55% | -1,453 | -5.11% | 28,457 |
| Douglas | 5,718 | 60.78% | 3,689 | 39.22% | 2,029 | 21.57% | 9,407 |
| Ferry | 981 | 49.42% | 1,004 | 50.58% | -23 | -1.16% | 1,985 |
| Franklin | 7,683 | 70.43% | 3,225 | 29.57% | 4,458 | 40.87% | 10,908 |
| Garfield | 719 | 54.43% | 602 | 45.57% | 117 | 8.86% | 1,321 |
| Grant | 10,897 | 60.00% | 7,265 | 40.00% | 3,632 | 20.00% | 18,162 |
| Grays Harbor | 9,780 | 40.43% | 14,409 | 59.57% | -4,629 | -19.14% | 24,189 |
| Island | 12,806 | 59.62% | 8,675 | 40.38% | 4,131 | 19.23% | 21,481 |
| Jefferson | 4,298 | 44.37% | 5,388 | 55.63% | -1,090 | -11.25% | 9,686 |
| King | 289,087 | 46.00% | 339,402 | 54.00% | -50,315 | -8.01% | 628,489 |
| Kitsap | 36,125 | 54.23% | 30,493 | 45.77% | 5,632 | 8.45% | 66,618 |
| Kittitas | 5,542 | 52.37% | 5,041 | 47.63% | 501 | 4.73% | 10,583 |
| Klickitat | 3,064 | 50.67% | 2,983 | 49.33% | 81 | 1.34% | 6,047 |
| Lewis | 14,254 | 60.55% | 9,287 | 39.45% | 4,967 | 21.10% | 23,541 |
| Lincoln | 2,805 | 59.21% | 1,932 | 40.79% | 873 | 18.43% | 4,737 |
| Mason | 7,692 | 48.78% | 8,078 | 51.22% | -386 | -2.45% | 15,770 |
| Okanogan | 6,189 | 52.01% | 5,711 | 47.99% | 478 | 4.02% | 11,900 |
| Pacific | 3,325 | 40.49% | 4,887 | 59.51% | -1,562 | -19.02% | 8,212 |
| Pend Oreille | 1,870 | 50.20% | 1,855 | 49.80% | 15 | 0.40% | 3,725 |
| Pierce | 96,122 | 50.74% | 93,310 | 49.26% | 2,812 | 1.48% | 189,432 |
| San Juan | 2,811 | 48.95% | 2,932 | 51.05% | -121 | -2.11% | 5,743 |
| Skagit | 16,747 | 52.07% | 15,416 | 47.93% | 1,331 | 4.14% | 32,163 |
| Skamania | 1,299 | 42.26% | 1,775 | 57.74% | -476 | -15.48% | 3,074 |
| Snohomish | 88,307 | 52.34% | 80,413 | 47.66% | 7,894 | 4.68% | 168,720 |
| Spokane | 73,583 | 51.80% | 68,482 | 48.20% | 5,101 | 3.59% | 142,065 |
| Stevens | 6,729 | 55.53% | 5,389 | 44.47% | 1,340 | 11.06% | 12,118 |
| Thurston | 33,371 | 49.34% | 34,266 | 50.66% | -895 | -1.32% | 67,637 |
| Wahkiakum | 716 | 47.11% | 804 | 52.89% | -88 | -5.79% | 1,520 |
| Walla Walla | 10,647 | 60.32% | 7,004 | 39.68% | 3,643 | 20.64% | 17,651 |
| Whatcom | 25,278 | 50.50% | 24,779 | 49.50% | 499 | 1.00% | 50,057 |
| Whitman | 8,022 | 52.51% | 7,256 | 47.49% | 766 | 5.01% | 15,278 |
| Yakima | 36,844 | 61.79% | 22,785 | 38.21% | 14,059 | 23.58% | 59,629 |
| Totals | 944,359 | 51.09% | 904,183 | 48.91% | 40,176 | 2.17% | 1,848,542 |
Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic
edit
See also
editReferences
edit- ↑ Ammons, David (November 9, 1988). "Slade Gorton runs, wins as a hard-liner". Longview Daily News. Longview, Washington. Associated Press. p. 5. Retrieved June 24, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Elections Search Results - September 1988 Primary". Washington Secretary of State. Retrieved June 24, 2022.
- 1 2 Munro, Ralph (November 8, 1988). "Elections Search Results November 1988 General U. S. Senator". Secretary of State of Washington. Retrieved January 22, 2026.