OLYMPIA, Wash. — Track returns by county on KING 5's exclusive interactive map as results come in during the March 12 presidential primary in Washington state.
An initial round of presidential primary election returns is expected to be released shortly after 8 p.m. on election day. These returns are from ballots that were turned in early and tabulated.
Counties will release additional results in the days after the election as more ballots are counted. Additional results are typically released daily.
On the map below, select a political party in the upper right-hand corner to see election results for Democrat or Republican candidates. Click individual counties on the map to see a breakdown of the results by county.
The presidential primary is a way for voters to help the major political parties choose presidential nominees. Each major political party decides which candidates are printed on their side of the November ballot for the general election.
This process is only for the March 12 primary and does not apply to the November general election.
Both parties have rules on how they decide to allocate delegates using the primary results.
A candidate must get the majority of their party's delegates to win the nomination.
Watch KING 5's presidential primary special
What is a delegate?
In the context of presidential elections, delegates are individuals who represent their state or community at their party’s presidential nominating convention. These delegates choose a presidential candidate to represent the national party in the November general election. They also approve the party’s platform and adopt rules governing the party. Delegates tend to be party insiders or activists or early supporters of a particular presidential candidate.
State delegates attend their respective party's national convention to confirm their choice of candidates.
The 2024 Democratic National Convention is Aug. 19-22, and the Republican National Convention is July 15-18.
The general election is Tuesday, Nov. 5.