Smith on Politics: 46th Legislative District Shows How Top-Two Primary is Working

How the top-two system worked in 46th District  

The 46th Legislative District, which now includes Lake Forest Park and Kenmore along with northeast Seattle, illustrates how the top two primary works in a one-party dominanted district. The District will have two Democrat vs. Democrat general elections and one Democrat running unopposed,  

That seems uncompetitive, but the two Democrat vs. Democrat general elections certainly will be more competitive than either would have been under a partisan primary.  

One of the Democrat vs. Democrat general elections matches appointed incumbent Gerry Pollet and challenger Sylvester Cann – the only candidates who filed for the position. Under any kind of partisan nominating primary, the winner of the primary would have been unopposed in November.  

The other Democrat vs. Democrat general election is for the position that retiring State Rep. Phyllis Kenney now holds. One Republican ran in the primary, but he got only 18 percent of the primary vote, while four Democrats divided 80 percent. A general election between two of them certainly will be more competitive than one between the leading Democrat and the Republican who won 18 percent in the primary, 

In the third 46th District contest, incumbent Democratic State Sen. David Frockt is running unopposed, meaning that there was an opportunity for any Republican or third-party candidate to win a place on the November ballot, as a Green Party candidate did in a heavily Democratic northwest Washington district, or for a write-in candidate to get on the ballot as Republicans did in two South Snohomish County districts.

The two 46th District races are among 13 one-party general-election contests among the 123 legislative seats on this year’s ballot. The race to replace Kenney is the only one-party general election in which there were candidates from two parties in the primary, meaning that in a partisan primary, the small number of primary voters would have decided the election rather than the larger November electorate

Opponents of the top-two primary have said that the system would have reduced our choices by giving us two candidates from the same party running for major offices and that it would hurt minor parties. Proponents have said it would favor more moderate candidates than come from partisan primaries.

The top-two primary has given Washington a few one-party general elections, but all have been at the county and legislative-district levels.

This year, all eight statewide partisan offices, the Washington U.S. senate position and the 10 Congressional District seats will have Democrat vs. Republican contests on the November ballot.

What did it do for minor parties? Not much, but the minor parties did little to take advantage of the system. The Green Party candidate used the system to qualify for the general election in a legislative district in northwest Washington where the Democratic candidate otherwise would have been unopposed, as did a socialist in another district. The Greens, the Libertarians and other minor parties easily could have watched the filings as they unfolded and put up opponents for unopposed candidates for state treasurer and any of 41 legislative positions including the state senate seat in the 46th Legislative District.

Has it given us more moderate politicians? It's too early to tell. We now have Democrats who caucus with Republicans, but that had often happened under other systems for decades.

Party preference system easy to fix

Our primary ballots showed candidates who list their party preferences as "Employmentwealth Party," "Independent Party," “G.O.P. Party” and "Democratic-Repub Party."

Ballots in other parts of the state show the "99% Party,” the “F.D.R. Democratic Party,” the “Progressive Independent Party” and “Neopopulist Party.”

Of course, there is no “Employmentwealth Party.” Legislators have considered proposals to limit the party preference to a list of recognized parties.

One proposal would require candidates to choose from the parties that have qualified for the presidential ballot by gathering 1,000 signatures: Democrat, Republican, Green, Libertarian, Constitution, Justice, Socialist Workers, and Socialist and Liberation parties; or choose “no party preference.”

Opponents of the top-two primary have opposed such a move, but the top-two system retains support. Opponents need to accept it.

About this column: Journalist and Shoreline resident Evan Smith has covered local issues for nearly two decades. His politics column appears on Patch every other week.