1996 Washington Secretary of State election
November 5, 1996
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County results Munro: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% Kenney: 40–50% | |||||||||||||||||
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The 1996 Washington Secretary of State election took place on November 5, 1996. Incumbent secretary of state Ralph Munro was re-elected.
Primary election
The primary election took place in September, with Republican incumbent Ralph Munro running unopposed. Natural Law candidate Gary Gill and Democratic candidate Phyllis Gutiérrez Kenney were also uncontested for their parties nominations.
General election
In the general election, Munro coasted to victory over Kenney and Gill.
Kenney, at the time of the election, was serving as a member of the board of trustees of the Seattle community college district. Owing to the relative efficiency of her campaign against the long-serving and affable incumbent Munro (described by the Associated Press at the time as "possibly the GOP's most popular officeholder" in Washington[1]), governor Mike Lowry appointed Kenney to a vacant seat in the Washington House of Representatives following her defeat.[2]
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Ralph Munro (incumbent) | 1,223,769 | 57.30% | +1.16% | |
| Democratic | Phyllis Gutiérrez Kenney | 838,632 | 39.27% | –1.48% | |
| Natural Law | Gary Gill | 73,229 | 3.43% | N/A | |
| Total votes | 2,281,219 | 100.00% | N/A | ||
| Republican hold | |||||
By county
| County[3] | Ralph Munro
Republican |
Phyllis Gutiérrez Kenney
Democratic |
Gary Gill
Natural Law |
Margin | Total votes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Adams | 2,917 | 66.74% | 1,324 | 30.29% | 130 | 2.97% | 1,593 | 36.44% | 4,371 |
| Asotin | 3,467 | 50.49% | 3,097 | 45.10% | 303 | 4.41% | 370 | 5.39% | 6,867 |
| Benton | 33,045 | 64.60% | 16,490 | 32.24% | 1,618 | 3.16% | 16,555 | 32.36% | 51,153 |
| Chelan | 15,747 | 69.95% | 6,068 | 26.95% | 697 | 3.10% | 9,679 | 42.99% | 22,512 |
| Clallam | 16,709 | 60.03% | 10,076 | 36.20% | 1,051 | 3.78% | 6,633 | 23.83% | 27,836 |
| Clark | 58,403 | 54.78% | 44,256 | 41.51% | 3,948 | 3.70% | 14,147 | 13.27% | 106,607 |
| Columbia | 1,167 | 62.98% | 640 | 34.54% | 46 | 2.48% | 527 | 28.44% | 1,853 |
| Cowlitz | 15,755 | 49.69% | 14,899 | 46.99% | 1,052 | 3.32% | 856 | 2.70% | 31,706 |
| Douglas | 7,089 | 68.30% | 2,976 | 28.67% | 314 | 3.03% | 4,113 | 39.63% | 10,379 |
| Ferry | 1,470 | 55.53% | 1,058 | 39.97% | 119 | 4.50% | 412 | 15.56% | 2,647 |
| Franklin | 7,285 | 61.15% | 4,295 | 36.05% | 333 | 2.80% | 2,990 | 25.10% | 11,913 |
| Garfield | 772 | 64.12% | 403 | 33.47% | 29 | 2.41% | 369 | 30.65% | 1,204 |
| Grant | 13,378 | 64.18% | 6,761 | 32.44% | 705 | 3.38% | 6,617 | 31.75% | 20,844 |
| Grays Harbor | 12,841 | 52.05% | 10,998 | 44.58% | 830 | 3.36% | 1,843 | 7.47% | 24,669 |
| Island | 16,286 | 60.50% | 9,621 | 35.74% | 1,012 | 3.76% | 6,665 | 24.76% | 26,919 |
| Jefferson | 7,026 | 52.28% | 5,852 | 43.54% | 561 | 4.17% | 1,174 | 8.74% | 13,439 |
| King | 374,425 | 54.18% | 290,682 | 42.06% | 25,977 | 3.76% | 83,743 | 12.12% | 691,084 |
| Kitsap | 54,894 | 61.90% | 31,276 | 35.27% | 2,506 | 2.83% | 23,618 | 26.63% | 88,676 |
| Kittitas | 7,451 | 62.38% | 4,115 | 34.45% | 378 | 3.16% | 3,336 | 27.93% | 11,944 |
| Klickitat | 3,362 | 52.08% | 2,840 | 44.00% | 253 | 3.92% | 522 | 8.09% | 6,455 |
| Lewis | 17,115 | 65.44% | 8,074 | 30.87% | 963 | 3.68% | 9,041 | 34.57% | 26,152 |
| Lincoln | 3,160 | 66.11% | 1,485 | 31.07% | 135 | 2.82% | 1,675 | 35.04% | 4,780 |
| Mason | 11,685 | 58.39% | 7,581 | 37.88% | 745 | 3.72% | 4,104 | 20.51% | 20,011 |
| Okanogan | 7,293 | 59.99% | 4,248 | 34.94% | 616 | 5.07% | 3,045 | 25.05% | 12,157 |
| Pacific | 4,064 | 47.32% | 4,193 | 48.82% | 331 | 3.85% | -129 | -1.50% | 8,588 |
| Pend Oreille | 2,535 | 53.90% | 1,967 | 41.82% | 201 | 4.27% | 568 | 12.08% | 4,703 |
| Pierce | 130,940 | 57.58% | 89,698 | 39.45% | 6,762 | 2.97% | 41,242 | 18.14% | 227,400 |
| San Juan | 3,674 | 53.46% | 2,826 | 41.12% | 372 | 5.41% | 848 | 12.34% | 6,872 |
| Skagit | 22,702 | 58.20% | 14,808 | 37.96% | 1,500 | 3.85% | 7,894 | 20.24% | 39,010 |
| Skamania | 1,769 | 50.66% | 1,544 | 44.22% | 179 | 5.13% | 225 | 6.44% | 3,492 |
| Snohomish | 120,005 | 56.92% | 84,243 | 39.96% | 6,589 | 3.13% | 35,762 | 16.96% | 210,837 |
| Spokane | 87,131 | 57.07% | 61,495 | 40.28% | 4,057 | 2.66% | 25,636 | 16.79% | 152,683 |
| Stevens | 9,570 | 61.58% | 5,297 | 34.08% | 675 | 4.34% | 4,273 | 27.49% | 15,542 |
| Thurston | 55,395 | 65.79% | 25,884 | 30.74% | 2,925 | 3.47% | 29,511 | 35.05% | 84,204 |
| Wahkiakum | 927 | 54.95% | 696 | 41.26% | 64 | 3.79% | 231 | 13.69% | 1,687 |
| Walla Walla | 11,331 | 61.51% | 6,561 | 35.62% | 529 | 2.87% | 4,770 | 25.89% | 18,421 |
| Whatcom | 35,319 | 58.07% | 23,116 | 38.00% | 2,390 | 3.93% | 12,203 | 20.06% | 60,825 |
| Whitman | 8,635 | 58.87% | 5,574 | 38.00% | 460 | 3.14% | 3,061 | 20.87% | 14,669 |
| Yakima | 37,030 | 61.19% | 21,615 | 35.72% | 1,874 | 3.10% | 15,415 | 25.47% | 60,519 |
| Totals | 1,223,769 | 57.30% | 838,632 | 39.27% | 73,229 | 3.43% | 385,137 | 18.03% | 2,135,630 |
Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican
References
- ^ Ammons, David (November 1, 1996). "Secretary of State campaign challenger finds campaign tough sledding". Moscow-Pullman Daily News.
- ^ "Kenney, Phyllis Gutierrez (b. 1936)". historylink.org. HistoryLink. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
- ^ a b Munro, Ralph (November 5, 1996). "Elections Search Results November 1996 General Secretary of State". Secretary of State of Washington. Retrieved January 23, 2026.