Pro-Impeachment Rep. Dan Newhouse Skates Past Trump-Endorsed Primary Challenge

Republican Rep. Dan Newhouse advanced to November’s general election in Washington’s Fourth District, surviving a primary challenge stemming from his vote to impeach former President Donald Trump.

Newhouse, serving in his fourth term, ran against seven other candidates in a top-two primary. Receiving 25.5% of the primary vote, the incumbent will face off against Democrat Doug White in November. Trump endorsed former police chief Loren Culp, who unsuccessfully ran for governor against incumbent Democrat Jay Inslee in 2020, and finished third.

New: pro-impeachment #WA04 Rep. Dan Newhouse (R) advances to the general election, where he’s safe. But he’s lucky: his pro-Trump GOP challengers split 49% of the vote six ways, while he scraped by w/ 25%.

— Dave Wasserman (@Redistrict) August 6, 2022

The chairman of the GOP’s Western Caucus, Newhouse has kept a lower profile than some of his fellow impeachers while focusing primarily on kitchen table issues. Newhouse and fellow Republican Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers highlighted the millions of dollars in earmarks they directed to central Washington in 2021. (RELATED: House Republicans Reveal The One Policy They Want Biden To Announce At State Of The Union)

The Republican Main Street Coalition’s Super PAC, Defending Main Street, spent more than $1.1 million in the primary highlighting Newhouse’s support for Washington agriculture. Other ads funded by Defending Main Street alleged that Culp failed to pay taxes and misused campaign funds.

Several elections analysts called the race late Friday night, three days after voting concluded. Washington’s universal vote-by-mail rules allow voters to submit ballots up through election day, meaning that the results of races are not often immediately clear.