Democratic Representative Marie Gluesenkamp Perez and Republican State Senator John Braun will advance to the general election in Washington's 3rd Congressional District, CBS News projects. The district, located in the southwestern corner of Washington state, held a nonpartisan primary on August 5, 2026, where the top two vote-getters move on to the November ballot.
Gluesenkamp Perez and Braun outpaced seven other candidates to secure their spots in the general election. This race is among the most closely watched House contests this election cycle and is expected to influence control of the U.S. House of Representatives in early 2027.
Notably, Washington's 3rd District was one of 13 districts that voted for President Trump in 2024 while electing a Democrat to the House. Gluesenkamp Perez has represented the district since 2023, having twice defeated far-right conservative Joe Kent, who later served as Trump's counterterrorism chief before resigning over the Iran war.
When asked to confirm that President Biden won the district, Braun responded, "That's correct." He also criticized former President Trump's sweeping tariffs, acknowledging appropriate uses for import taxes, including on his own manufacturing business.
Caitlin Yilek, a politics reporter at CBSNews.com and former member of the 2022 Paul Miller Washington Reporting Fellowship with the National Press Foundation, reported on the primary results.
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