Fuse Washington

Washington State's primary election is on Tuesday, August 19th.

There are plenty of reasons you might not vote in Washington’s first ever top two primary, but none of them are any good as far as we’re concerned. If you haven’t already voted, or you’re considering not voting, this message is for YOU!

There are many ways to get fast and accurate information about the candidates running in your area. Fuse has recommendations for the most important statewide races and information on judicial races.

The Secretary of State has a basic voters guide available here or you can rely on endorsements made by groups you trust. Click here to view Fuse's Primary Voters Guide. For races we don't cover, check out the Washington State Democrat's endorsements here or the Washington State Republican's endorsements here.

The primary is on Tuesday, August 19th. You must have your ballot postmarked by August 19th for your vote to count. If you live in King or Pierce Counties and vote at the polls, you must go to your polling location on August 19th.

If you still need help remembering when the primary is, check out this great video by our friends at Washington Bus, which is sure to commit the date to your memory.

If you are sure you're registered to vote by mail and you did not receive a ballot, you should contact the Auditor or Elections office in your county. Click here to find contact information for your county.

Many counties have drop boxes, where you can leave your ballot, without a stamp. Check out the website for the Auditor or Elections office in your county to find out if there are drop boxes near you. Click here to find the website for your county.

The August 19th primary will be our first time using the Top 2 primary system. Under the Top 2 primary, voters choose among all candidates running for each office, instead of declaring a party affiliation, which used to be required to vote in the primary. The two candidates who receive the most votes in the primary will advance to the general election. For each partisan office, candidates have the option of stating a political party preference, although this does not mean that the political party has endorsed them.

Fore more information on the Top 2 primary, visit the FAQ section on the Secretary of State’s website here.

Sorry to break it to you, but it is passed the deadline to register to vote for the primary election. BUT, you should hop over immediately to the Secretary of State’s website to register online, or by mail. Register to vote now and eliminate your excuse to skip voting in the general election.

You don’t have a half hour to exercise your constitutional responsibility to vote and help choose the next set of leaders and decision makers in Washington state? First, that’s straight up lame. Second, we’ve got you covered anyway--the most time-consuming part is choosing which candidates to vote for and we've got the scoops for you. Click here to view Fuse's Primary Voters Guide. For races we don't cover, check out the Washington State Democrat's endorsements here or the Washington State Republican's endorsements here.

The momentum generated by a primary win is priceless for candidates in close races. It’s critical to their success in generating volunteers and raising money for the general election in November.

In fact, the primary election is more important now then it has ever been in the past. Because of the new Top 2 primary, there’s no guarantee that both a Democrat and Republican will advance to November’s election—there will many races where both advancing candidates represent the same party – making momentum even more important.

Even more importantly, many judicial races will be decided in the primary election. In races where one judicial candidate earns over 50% in the primary, they will be elected and therefore not on the November ballot. You don’t want everyone else deciding without you, do you?

Great! Now invite 5 friends to join you!

Questions? Comments? Let us know!