1998 United States Senate election in Washington
November 3, 1998
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County results Murray: 50–60% 60–70% Smith: 50–60% | |||||||||||||||||
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| Elections in Washington (state) |
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The 1998 United States Senate election in Washington was held November 3, 1998. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Patty Murray won re-election to a second term.
Candidates
Democratic
- Patty Murray, incumbent U.S. Senator
Republican
- Linda Smith, U.S. Representative from WA-03 (1995–1999)
Polling
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size[a] |
Margin of error |
Patty Murray (D) |
Linda Smith (R) |
Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mason Dixon[1] | October 26–27, 1998 | 801 (LV) | ± 3.5% | 49% | 41% | 10% |
| Mason Dixon[1] | October 5–6, 1998 | 810 (LV) | ± 3.5% | 51% | 38% | 11% |
| Elway Research[1] | September 18–19, 1998 | 475 (V) | ± 4.5% | 44% | 37% | 19% |
| Mason Dixon[1] | September 8–9, 1998 | 812 (LV) | ± 3.5% | 51% | 35% | 14% |
Results
The election was not close, with Murray winning by 16.8% of the vote. Murray won in a landslide victory by racking up huge margins in Western Washington. Specifically, Murray trounced Smith in the state’s most populous county, King County. Murray also won six counties in the historically conservative eastern part of the state. Murray was sworn in for a second term on January 3, 1999.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Patty Murray (Incumbent) | 1,103,184 | 58.41% | +4.42% | |
| Republican | Linda Smith | 785,377 | 41.59% | –4.42% | |
| Total votes | 1,888,561 | 100.00% | N/A | ||
| Democratic hold | |||||
By county
| County[2] | Patty Murray
Democratic |
Linda Smith
Republican |
Margin | Total votes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Adams | 1,566 | 42.97% | 2,078 | 57.03% | -512 | -14.05% | 3,644 |
| Asotin | 3,054 | 52.06% | 2,812 | 47.94% | 242 | 4.13% | 5,866 |
| Benton | 20,072 | 46.54% | 23,052 | 53.46% | -2,980 | -6.91% | 43,124 |
| Chelan | 8,907 | 42.95% | 11,830 | 57.05% | -2,923 | -14.10% | 20,737 |
| Clallam | 14,452 | 53.79% | 12,417 | 46.21% | 2,035 | 7.57% | 26,869 |
| Clark | 46,251 | 47.85% | 50,412 | 52.15% | -4,161 | -4.30% | 96,663 |
| Columbia | 756 | 44.16% | 956 | 55.84% | -200 | -11.68% | 1,712 |
| Cowlitz | 15,446 | 53.32% | 13,524 | 46.68% | 1,922 | 6.63% | 28,970 |
| Douglas | 3,800 | 42.18% | 5,208 | 57.82% | -1,408 | -15.63% | 9,008 |
| Ferry | 1,339 | 50.62% | 1,306 | 49.38% | 33 | 1.25% | 2,645 |
| Franklin | 4,621 | 44.40% | 5,786 | 55.60% | -1,165 | -11.19% | 10,407 |
| Garfield | 596 | 47.64% | 655 | 52.36% | -59 | -4.72% | 1,251 |
| Grant | 7,430 | 41.88% | 10,310 | 58.12% | -2,880 | -16.23% | 17,740 |
| Grays Harbor | 13,388 | 62.85% | 7,914 | 37.15% | 5,474 | 25.70% | 21,302 |
| Island | 13,639 | 54.52% | 11,378 | 45.48% | 2,261 | 9.04% | 25,017 |
| Jefferson | 7,820 | 61.90% | 4,813 | 38.10% | 3,007 | 23.80% | 12,633 |
| King | 405,177 | 67.11% | 198,592 | 32.89% | 206,585 | 34.22% | 603,769 |
| Kitsap | 48,122 | 58.63% | 33,956 | 41.37% | 14,166 | 17.26% | 82,078 |
| Kittitas | 5,469 | 50.85% | 5,286 | 49.15% | 183 | 1.70% | 10,755 |
| Klickitat | 2,914 | 46.25% | 3,387 | 53.75% | -473 | -7.51% | 6,301 |
| Lewis | 10,045 | 40.60% | 14,697 | 59.40% | -4,652 | -18.80% | 24,742 |
| Lincoln | 2,042 | 46.37% | 2,362 | 53.63% | -320 | -7.27% | 4,404 |
| Mason | 10,808 | 59.32% | 7,413 | 40.68% | 3,395 | 18.63% | 18,221 |
| Okanogan | 5,209 | 45.04% | 6,355 | 54.96% | -1,146 | -9.91% | 11,564 |
| Pacific | 5,027 | 63.43% | 2,898 | 36.57% | 2,129 | 26.86% | 7,925 |
| Pend Oreille | 2,439 | 51.68% | 2,280 | 48.32% | 159 | 3.37% | 4,719 |
| Pierce | 118,660 | 58.53% | 84,057 | 41.47% | 34,603 | 17.07% | 202,717 |
| San Juan | 4,471 | 64.19% | 2,494 | 35.81% | 1,977 | 28.38% | 6,965 |
| Skagit | 18,964 | 54.86% | 15,602 | 45.14% | 3,362 | 9.73% | 34,566 |
| Skamania | 1,586 | 48.00% | 1,718 | 52.00% | -132 | -4.00% | 3,304 |
| Snohomish | 106,917 | 58.15% | 76,959 | 41.85% | 29,958 | 16.29% | 183,876 |
| Spokane | 67,901 | 53.58% | 58,817 | 46.42% | 9,084 | 7.17% | 126,718 |
| Stevens | 5,759 | 42.68% | 7,734 | 57.32% | -1,975 | -14.64% | 13,493 |
| Thurston | 48,132 | 62.14% | 29,320 | 37.86% | 18,812 | 24.29% | 77,452 |
| Wahkiakum | 991 | 53.28% | 869 | 46.72% | 122 | 6.56% | 1,860 |
| Walla Walla | 7,348 | 47.48% | 8,128 | 52.52% | -780 | -5.04% | 15,476 |
| Whatcom | 30,843 | 55.41% | 24,825 | 44.59% | 6,018 | 10.81% | 55,668 |
| Whitman | 6,937 | 54.41% | 5,813 | 45.59% | 1,124 | 8.82% | 12,750 |
| Yakima | 24,286 | 47.02% | 27,364 | 52.98% | -3,078 | -5.96% | 51,650 |
| Totals | 1,103,184 | 58.41% | 785,377 | 41.59% | 317,807 | 16.83% | 1,888,561 |
Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican
- Clark (Largest city: Vancouver)
- Klickitat (Largest city: Goldendale)
- Skamania (Largest city: Carson)
Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic
- Asotin (Largest city: Clarkston)
- Clallam (Largest city: Port Angeles)
- Ferry (Largest city: Republic)
- Kitsap (Largest city: Bremerton)
- Pend Oreille (Largest city: Newport)
- Spokane (Largest city: Spokane)
- Whitman (Largest city: Pullman)
See also
Notes
- ^ Key:
A – all adults
RV – registered voters
LV – likely voters
V – unclear
References
- ^ a b c d "CNN AllPolitics Election '98 - Washington 1998 Polls". CNN. Retrieved June 29, 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ a b Munro, Ralph (November 3, 1998). "Elections Search Results November 1998 General U. S. Senator". Secretary of State of Washington. Retrieved January 21, 2026.