2016 Washington gubernatorial election
← 2012 November 8, 2016 2020 →
 
Nominee Jay Inslee Bill Bryant
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 1,760,520 1,476,346
Percentage 54.2% 45.5%
Inslee:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%
Bryant:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%
Tie:      50%
     No data
Governor before election

Jay Inslee
Democratic

Elected Governor

Jay Inslee
Democratic

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The 2016 Washington gubernatorial election was held on November 8, 2016.

Under Washington's top-two primary law, all candidates appear on the same ballot, regardless of party. In the August 2 primary, residents voted for one of several candidates from a range of party affiliations. The top two finishers, incumbent governor Jay Inslee (Democratic)[1] and Port of Seattle Commissioner Bill Bryant (Republican), moved on to the November general election, which Inslee won. As of 2024, this was the last gubernatorial election in Washington in which the margin of victory was within single digits.[original research?]

Background

Democratic governor Christine Gregoire declined to seek a third term in 2012. Democratic former U.S. Representative Jay Inslee was elected to succeed her, defeating Republican Rob McKenna, the outgoing Attorney General of Washington, by 51.4% to 48.3%. The last Republican to hold the office of governor was John Spellman in 1985, meaning that Washington has the second longest period (South Dakota has not had a Democratic governor since 1979) of one-party statehouse rule in America.[2]

Primary election

Democratic Party

Declared

Republican Party

Declared

Declined

Third Party and independent candidates

Declared

Declined

Polling

Hypothetical polling
with Inslee, Bryant, and Dorn
Poll source Date(s)
administered 		Sample
size 		Margin of
error 		Jay
Inslee (D) 		Bill
Bryant (R) 		Randy
Dorn (I) 		Undecided
Elway Poll April 14–17, 2016 503 ± 3.5% 41% 26% 7% 25%

Results

Results by county:
  Inslee—40–50%
  Inslee—60–70%
  Bryant—30–40%
  Bryant—40–50%
  Bryant—50–60%
  Bryant—60–70%
Blanket primary election results[10]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Jay Inslee (incumbent) 687,412 49.30
Republican Bill Bryant 534,519 38.33
Republican Bill Hirt 48,382 3.47
Democratic Patrick O'Rourke 40,572 2.91
Independent Steve Rubenstein 22,582 1.62
Democratic James Robert Deal 14,623 1.05
Democratic Johnathan Dodds 14,152 1.01
Republican Goodspaceguy 13,191 0.95
Socialist Workers Mary Martin 10,374 0.74
Independent David Blomstrom 4,512 0.32
Independent Christian Joubert 4,103 0.29
Total votes 1,394,422 100

General election

Debates

Predictions

Source Ranking As of
The Cook Political Report[11] Safe D August 12, 2016
Daily Kos[12] Safe D November 8, 2016
Rothenberg Political Report[13] Safe D November 3, 2016
Sabato's Crystal Ball[14] Safe D November 7, 2016
Real Clear Politics[15] Lean D November 1, 2016
Governing[16] Likely D November 7, 2016

Endorsements

Jay Inslee (D)
U.S Presidents
Newspapers
Bill Bryant (R)
U.S. Senators
U.S. Representatives
Statewide officials
State legislators
Newspapers

Polling

Aggregate polls
Source of poll
aggregation 		Dates
administered 		Dates
updated 		Jay
Inslee (D) 		Bill
Bryant (R) 		Other/Undecided
[a] 		Margin
Real Clear Politics October 6 – November 2, 2016 November 2, 2016 50.7% 42.3% 7.0% Inslee +8.4%
Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org.
Poll source Date(s)
administered 		Sample
size 		Margin of
error 		Jay
Inslee (D) 		Bill
Bryant (R) 		Undecided
SurveyMonkey November 1–7, 2016 1,451 ± 4.6% 55% 42% 3%
Insights West Archived 2016-11-08 at the Wayback Machine November 4–6, 2016 402 ± 4.9% 49% 40% 10%
SurveyMonkey October 31 – November 6, 2016 1,292 ± 4.6% 55% 42% 3%
SurveyMonkey October 28 – November 3, 2016 944 ± 4.6% 56% 41% 3%
SurveyUSA October 31 – November 2, 2016 667 ± 3.9% 50% 43% 6%
SurveyMonkey October 27 – November 2, 2016 807 ± 4.6% 56% 41% 3%
SurveyMonkey October 26 – November 1, 2016 698 ± 4.6% 55% 41% 4%
SurveyMonkey October 25–31, 2016 745 ± 4.6% 55% 42% 3%
Elway Poll October 20–22, 2016 502 ± 4.5% 51% 39% 10%
KCTS 9/YouGov October 6–13, 2016 750 ± 4.4% 51% 45% 4%
Strategies 360/KOMO News September 29 – October 3, 2016 500 ± 4.4% 50% 40% 8%
Elway Poll August 9–13, 2016 500 ± 4.5% 48% 36% 16%
Moore Information May 16–18, 2016 500 ± 4.0% 43% 36% 18%
Elway Poll April 14–17, 2016 503 ± 3.5% 48% 36% 16%
Elway Poll December 28–30, 2015 500 ± 4.5% 39% 30% 31%
Public Policy Polling May 14–17, 2015 879 ± 3.3% 46% 34% 21%
Hypothetical polling
Jay Inslee vs. Andy Hill
Poll source Date(s)
administered 		Sample
size 		Margin of
error 		Jay
Inslee (D) 		Andy
Hill (R) 		Undecided
Public Policy Polling May 14–17, 2015 879 ± 3.3% 45% 31% 24%
Jay Inslee vs. Rob McKenna
Poll source Date(s)
administered 		Sample
size 		Margin of
error 		Jay
Inslee (D) 		Rob
McKenna (R) 		Undecided
Public Policy Polling May 14–17, 2015 879 ± 3.3% 43% 38% 19%
Jay Inslee vs. Dave Reichert
Poll source Date(s)
administered 		Sample
size 		Margin of
error 		Jay
Inslee (D) 		Dave
Reichert (R) 		Undecided
Public Policy Polling May 14–17, 2015 879 ± 3.3% 45% 34% 22%
Jay Inslee vs. generic Republican
Poll source Date(s)
administered 		Sample
size 		Margin of
error 		Jay
Inslee (D) 		Generic
Republican 		Undecided
Elway Poll December 28–30, 2015 500 ± 4.5% 30% 25% 45%
Jay Inslee vs. generic opponent
Poll source Date(s)
administered 		Sample
size 		Margin of
error 		Jay
Inslee (D) 		Generic
Opponent 		Undecided
Moore Information May 16–18, 2016 500 ± 4.0% 38% 47% 15%
Moore Information May 2015 500 ± 4.0% 38% 44% 18%
Generic Democrat vs. generic Republican
Poll source Date(s)
administered 		Sample
size 		Margin of
error 		Generic
Democrat 		Generic
Republican 		Other Undecided
Moore Information May 16–18, 2016 500 ± 4.0% 41% 34% 5% 20%
Moore Information May 2015 500 ± 4.0% 34% 30% 16% 20%

Results

2016 Washington gubernatorial election[34]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Jay Inslee (incumbent) 1,760,520 54.25% +2.85%
Republican Bill Bryant 1,476,346 45.49% -2.84%
Write-in 8,416 0.26% -0.02%
Total votes 3,245,282 100.00% N/A
Democratic hold

Results by county

County results
County[35] Jay Inslee

Democratic

Bill Bryant

Republican

Write-in

Various

Total votes
# % # % # %
Adams 1,533 32.64% 3,151 67.1% 12 0.26% 4,696
Asotin 4,149 42.46% 5,609 57.4% 13 0.13% 9,771
Benton 31,128 37.95% 50,730 61.84% 172 0.21% 82,030
Chelan 13,866 40.94% 19,934 58.86% 65 0.19% 33,865
Clallam 19,354 48.87% 20,180 50.78% 140 0.35% 39,602
Clark 96,032 47.93% 103,787 51.8% 560 0.28% 200,379
Columbia 688 31.5% 1,491 68.27% 5 0.23% 2,184
Cowlitz 19,593 42.75% 26,116 56.98% 124 0.27% 45,833
Douglas 5,441 34.73% 10,197 65.09% 28 0.18% 15,666
Ferry 1,360 37.56% 2,252 62.19% 9 0.25% 3,621
Franklin 9,731 40.27% 14,387 59.54% 45 0.19% 24,163
Garfield 370 29.65% 875 70.11% 3 0.24% 1,248
Grant 9,242 32.16% 19,401 67.5% 99 0.34% 28,742
Grays Harbor 14,038 48.43% 14,843 51.2% 107 0.37% 28,988
Island 21,797 50.16% 21,560 49.61% 98 0.23% 43,455
Jefferson 13,399 65.24% 7,049 34.32% 90 0.44% 20,538
King 677,943 67.69% 321,242 32.07% 2,409 0.24% 1,001,594
Kitsap 66,392 52.47% 59,762 47.23% 368 0.29% 126,522
Kittitas 7,984 41.66% 11,139 58.13% 40 0.21% 19,163
Klickitat 4,517 41.82% 6,260 57.96% 24 0.22% 10,801
Lewis 11,163 32.09% 23,539 67.66% 86 0.25% 34,788
Lincoln 1,616 27.92% 4,160 71.89% 11 0.19% 5,787
Mason 13,126 45.92% 15,365 53.75% 93 0.33% 28,584
Okanogan 7,437 43.06% 9,794 56.71% 39 0.23% 17,270
Pacific 5,313 49.29% 5,428 50.36% 37 0.34% 10,778
Pend Oreille 2,520 36.5% 4,364 63.21% 20 0.29% 6,904
Pierce 176,825 49.94% 176,287 49.79% 953 0.27% 354,065
San Juan 7,509 68.89% 3,356 30.79% 35 0.32% 10,900
Skagit 28,273 49.47% 28,701 50.22% 173 0.3% 57,147
Skamania 2,476 44.35% 3,094 55.42% 13 0.23% 5,583
Snohomish 182,544 52.12% 166,770 47.61% 937 0.27% 350,251
Spokane 106,009 45.87% 124,576 53.91% 508 0.22% 231,093
Stevens 7,148 31.02% 15,851 68.79% 45 0.2% 23,044
Thurston 71,835 54.67% 59,014 44.91% 559 0.43% 131,408
Wahkiakum 941 39.89% 1,413 59.9% 5 0.21% 2,359
Walla Walla 10,705 41.77% 14,880 58.06% 44 0.17% 25,629
Whatcom 62,634 56.45% 47,953 43.22% 370 0.33% 110,957
Whitman 8,727 49.41% 8,892 50.35% 43 0.24% 17,662
Yakima 35,162 44.96% 43,016 55.0% 34 0.04% 78,212
Totals 1,760,520 54.25% 1,476,346 45.49% 8,416 0.26% 3,245,282
Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican
Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

By congressional district

Inslee won 6 of 10 congressional districts.[36]

District Bryant Inslee Representative
1st 49% 51% Suzan DelBene
2nd 43% 57% Rick Larsen
3rd 55% 45% Jaime Herrera Beutler
4th 60% 40% Dan Newhouse
5th 56% 44% Cathy McMorris Rodgers
6th 46% 54% Derek Kilmer
7th 22% 78% Jim McDermott
Pramila Jayapal
8th 54% 46% Dave Reichert
9th 33% 67% Adam Smith
10th 47% 53% Denny Heck

Notes

  1. ^ Calculated by taking the difference of 100% and all other candidates combined.

References

  1. ^ "Stockpiling for 2016? Gov. Inslee stages quiet 2014 fundraiser". Seattle Pi. October 26, 2014. Retrieved October 21, 2014.
  2. ^ Connelly, Joel (September 29, 2014). "What 2014 elections say about 2016 governor's race". Seattle Pi. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. Retrieved October 26, 2014.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Camden, Jim (May 23, 2016). "Final list of candidates in the August primary". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved May 24, 2016.
  4. ^ Brunner, Jim (May 14, 2015). "Port Commissioner Bill Bryant announces run for governor". The Seattle Times. Retrieved May 14, 2015.
  5. ^ a b O'Sullivan, Joseph (September 11, 2015). "Hill, Litzow won't challenge Inslee in 2016". The Seattle Times. Retrieved September 14, 2015.
  6. ^ Rosenthal, Brian (February 19, 2013). "Former AG McKenna joins lawfirm". Yakima Herald. Retrieved March 4, 2013.
  7. ^ Cornfield, Jerry (June 6, 2013). "If not McKenna, others could challenge Inslee in 2016". HeraldNet. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved July 10, 2014.
  8. ^ Brunner, Jim (October 16, 2015). "Dave Reichert decides: He won't run against Jay Inslee for governor". The Seattle Times. Retrieved October 16, 2015.
  9. ^ Douglas, C.R. (March 9, 2016). "State schools chief Randy Dorn close to a third-party run for governor". Q13 Fox. Retrieved March 12, 2016.
  10. ^ "August 2, 2016 Primary Results - Governor". Washington Secretary of State. Archived from the original on August 23, 2016. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  11. ^ "2016 Governor Race ratings". The Cook Political Report. Retrieved October 15, 2018.
  12. ^ "Elections 2015-16". Daily Kos. Retrieved October 15, 2018.[permanent dead link]
  13. ^ "Gubernatorial Ratings". The Rothenberg Political Report. Retrieved October 15, 2018.
  14. ^ "Our Final 2016 picks". Sabato's Crystal Ball. Archived from the original on October 15, 2018. Retrieved October 15, 2018.
  15. ^ "2016 Election Maps - 2016 Governor Races". Real Clear Politics. Retrieved October 15, 2018.
  16. ^ "2016 Governors Races Ratings & News". Governing Magazine. Archived from the original on October 27, 2016. Retrieved October 28, 2016.
  17. ^ "President Obama to Washington Democrats: Stay involved". The Spokesman-Review.
  18. ^ "We endorse: Inslee 2.0 — Keep him as governor, but demand a stronger version". The News Tribune. October 20, 2016.
  19. ^ "THE OLYMPIAN'S 2016 ENDORSEMENTS". The Olympian. November 5, 2016.
  20. ^ "The Times recommends: Despite flaws, Jay Inslee is the better choice for governor". The Seattle Times. October 21, 2016.
  21. ^ "Endorsements for the November 2016 General Election". The Stranger. October 18, 2016.
  22. ^ "Former WA senator Gorton endorses Bill Bryant for governor". King 5 News. September 18, 2015.
  23. ^ "Former Congressman Sid Morrison Endorses Bill Bryant for Governor". Vote Smart. September 22, 2015.
  24. ^ a b c d e "Newhouse endorses Bill Bryant for governor". Tri-City Herald. October 23, 2015.
  25. ^ "Democrats and Republicans surprised by early governor's race". Covington Reporter. October 2, 2015.
  26. ^ "Gov's race 2016: Rob McKenna's advice to Bill Bryant". King 5 News. August 16, 2016.
  27. ^ "Senator Jan Angel Endorses Bryant Bid for Governor". Vote Smart. September 30, 2015.
  28. ^ "Senator Curtis King Backs Bryant Bid for Governor". Vote Smart. September 25, 2015.
  29. ^ "Rep. Matt Manweller Endorses Bill Bryant for Governor". Vote Smart. September 21, 2015.
  30. ^ "Review of all S-R endorsements". The Spokesman-Review. October 26, 2016.
  31. ^ "Our voice: We recommend Bill Bryant for governor". Tri-City Herald. October 23, 2016.
  32. ^ "Review of U-B election endorsements". Walla Walla Union-Bulletin. October 23, 2016.
  33. ^ "Endorsement: Bryant able to provide gubernatorial leadership". Yakima Herald-Republic. October 22, 2016.
  34. ^ "November 8, 2016 General Election Results (Washington)". Washington Secretary of State. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
  35. ^ "2016 Gubernatorial General Election Results". U.S. Election Atlas. November 8, 2016. Retrieved June 12, 2022.
  36. ^ Results (PDF). wei.sos.wa.gov (Report). Archived from the original (PDF) on June 30, 2018.

External links

Official campaign websites (Archived)
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