Connect with us

Politics

Gluesenkamp Pérez wins House race in Washington state

Published

on

Gluesenkamp Pérez wins House race in Washington state

NBC News projects that Democratic Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Pérez has won a second term in a Republican-leaning district in Washington state, defeating Republican Joe Kent in a rematch.

A centrist Blue Dog Democrat who beat Kent by just 2,629 votes in 2022, Gluesenkamp Pérez was considered one of the most vulnerable incumbents in the House. She broke with her party at times, receiving criticism from progressives for siding with Republicans on a bill to repeal President Joe Biden’s student loan relief efforts.

The owner of an auto repair shop in Portland, Oregon, Gluesenkamp Pérez touted her blue-collar bona fides and pragmatic politics in her campaign, casting Kent as an extremist who didn’t appreciate the reality of legislating.

At a televised debate in October, Gluesenkamp Pérez said that she favored tough immigration laws, such as requiring asylum-seekers to remain in Mexico during processing, but argued that Kent’s support for limiting immigration was an attempt to “re-establish a white majority” in the country.

Kent, a retired Green Beret endorsed by President-elect Donald Trump, may have lost in 2022 because of his ties to extremism, which include speaking at a rally in 2021 supporting people charged with nonviolent crimes in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol and campaign payments to a consultant who was a member of the Proud Boys. Kent has said that he is “not a white nationalist.

Local issues also came into play. Gluesenkamp Pérez bragged that she helped secure $1.5 billion for a new bridge over the Columbia River between Washington and Oregon. Kent opposed the project because it would extend a light rail line from Portland.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

Ryan Teague Beckwith

Ryan Teague Beckwith is a newsletter editor for BLN. He has previously worked for such outlets as Time magazine, Bloomberg News and CQ Roll Call. He teaches journalism at Georgetown University’s School of Continuing Studies.

Read More

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Politics

Trump lauds Schumer’s ‘guts’ in backing bill to avoid shutdown

Published

on

President Donald Trump on Friday congratulated Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer for “doing the right thing” by backing the Republican-led bill to avert a government shutdown, a choice that’s put the New York Democrat at odds with many in his party. “A non pass would be a Country destroyer…
Read More

Continue Reading

Politics

Dems ask Trump admin to explain Khalil’s arrest, calling it ‘playbook of authoritarians’

Published

on

Dems ask Trump admin to explain Khalil’s arrest, calling it ‘playbook of authoritarians’

More than 100 House Democrats sent the letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Secretary of State Marco Rubio…
Read More

Continue Reading

Politics

Capitol agenda: Schumer stops a shutdown

Published

on

Chuck Schumer has given Senate Democrats an out — drastically lowering the chances of a government shutdown Saturday. The Senate minority leader, both privately to his caucus Thursday and in a floor speech shortly after, said he would vote to advance a GOP-written stopgap to fund the government through September…
Read More

Continue Reading

Trending