Last Night's Primary Wins: Great, But Not For The Tea Party

Jillian Bandes | August 18, 2010 8:43 AM

Washington Republicans David Herrera, Dino Rossi and Dave Reichert won their primaries last night in what were predictable but important wins for the November general election. They were not, however, wins for the tea party. Whether that's an advantage for the Republican Party is a matter that's up for debate, but it's clear that that these candidates are best fit for their district — they all have a great shot at prevailing over their Democratic opponents.

Incumbent House Representative Reichert will face Democratic Microsoft executive Suzan DelBene in what promises to be a race that is just as exciting as 2008. That's when Reichert ekked out a squeaky win against computer programmer Darcy Burner, making my heart skip a beat. DelBene is using the same campaign rhetoric that Burner did, by insisting that Reichert isn't moderate enough for this district, but that rhetoric failed last time and it can fail again.

Rossi won the Senate primary against Sarah Palin / tea party favorite Clint Didier, and promises to launch an aggressive attack on the Democratic incumbent Sen. Patty Murray. Murray is suffering from a killer tax-and-spend reputation, and Rossi has promised to forgo earmarks if elected. That anti-earmark strategy has served Reichert well, and goes to show the degree of fiscal conservatism that has permeated even the most liberal corners of our country. Joe Connelly of the Seattle Times-Intelligencer says the contest could be the closest Senate race in a decade.

Hererra defeated tea party candidates David Hedrick

and David Castillo to earn the chance to face ex-state Rep. Denny Heck (D) in Washington's third district. This is the seat of retiring Rep. Brian Baird, who made a quick exit because of his comment that tea partiers were using “brownshirt tactics," and that their activities were similar to those of Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh's. This is one of the most evenly divided districts in the country, and promises to be a scorcher. Heck has a lot more cash, but everyone's saying that Herrera is a very solid candidate.

Wyoming also held a number of primary races last night, but most were not competitive.