BREMERTON, Wash. — Either Democrat Emily Randall or Republican Drew MacEwen will replace longtime U.S. Rep. Derek Kilmer in Washington's 6th Congressional District following the 2024 general election.
The question this year: Can MacEwen turn a national Congressional district that has been blue for more than six decades red?
"The area is becoming more Republican," said McEwen. "I'm reaching out to folks who feel left behind. They feel their party has left them."
MacEwen calls himself a moderate, Reagan Republican.
The 12-year state senator from Shelton is a Navy veteran and 23-year business owner. He's focused improving the economy, balancing the federal budget and returning bipartisanship to the nation's capitol.
"As a member of the political minority in Olympia, everything I do has to be bipartisan," McEwen said. "I'm always going to put my constituency first. That's what it's about and sometimes that means going against your party on some issues, and I've done that in the state Legislature."
The 6th U.S. Congressional District encompasses parts of Tacoma and all of the Olympic Peninsula, from Aberdeen to Neah Bay. It's a diverse population with diverse interests, from Navy shipyard workers to Native American tribes.
The seat was recently vacated by longtime Democrat Derek Kilmer who decided not to run for reelection.
It could help decide control of the U.S. House of Representatives with Republicans hoping to expand their narrow eight person majority.
"I'm the daughter of a Republican and a Democrat," said Democrat Emily Randall. "This is my community."
Randall is a hometown state senator from Bremerton and a progressive who believes she embodies the values of the district's voters. She sees abortion rights, climate change and lowering costs for families as key issues.
"Clearly, my constituents see that I've been showing up and doing the work for them," said Randall. "If we're tackling health care, education, housing and child care, the economic situation people are in is going to feel much different."
One thing uniting the two very different candidates is their desire to end the divisiveness in our nation's capitol.
"I don't know if Marjorie Taylor Green and I will become best friends," chuckled Randall, "but I'm sure there will be some new Republicans where we can build strong relationships."
"Neither party has a monopoly on the wackos," added MacEwen, with a laugh. "We've got them on both sides. The more pragmatic people that we have in the middle, the quieter those voices are going to be."