2016 Washington State Auditor election
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  McCarthy: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% Miloscia: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% | |||||||||||||||||
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The 2016 Washington state auditor election was held on November 8, 2016, to elect the Washington state auditor, concurrently with the 2016 U.S. presidential election, as well as elections to the U.S. Senate and various state and local elections, including for U.S. House and governor of Washington. Washington is one of two states that holds a top-two primary, meaning that all candidates are listed on the same ballot regardless of party affiliation, and the top two move on to the general election.
Incumbent Democratic state auditor Troy Kelley retired.[1] Democratic Pierce County executive Pat McCarthy narrowly defeated Republican state senator Mark Miloscia to succeed Kelley.[2]
The top-two primary was held on August 2.
Background
[edit]Kelley was elected in 2012 against Republican James Watkins, winning 53% of the vote to succeed conservative Democrat Brian Sonntag.[3] He was indicted over federal charges of felony theft and money laundering. Several attempts to remove him from office, including a threat of impeachment by the legislature, proved unsuccessful.[4] Kelley did not file to run for a second term.[1]
Primary election
[edit]Democratic Party
[edit]Advanced to general
[edit]- Pat McCarthy, Pierce County executive (2009–2017)[5]
Eliminated in primary
[edit]- Jeff Sprung, attorney[6]
Declined
[edit]- Troy Kelley, incumbent state auditor (2013–2017)[1]
Republican Party
[edit]Advanced to general
[edit]- Mark Miloscia, state senator (2015–2019)[7]
Third-party and independent candidates
[edit]Eliminated in primary
[edit]Endorsements
[edit]Jeff Sprung (D)
Newspapers
Results
[edit]Two Democratic, one Republican and two independent candidates competed in the primary. Mark Miloscia (R) and Pat McCarthy (D) finished as the top two and advanced to the general election.
Miloscia
- 30–40%
- 40–50%
- 50–60%
- 60–70%
McCarthy
- 30–40%
Sprung
- 30–40%
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Mark Miloscia | 481,910 | 36.71 | |
| Democratic | Pat McCarthy | 381,828 | 29.09 | |
| Democratic | Jeff Sprung | 314,290 | 23.94 | |
| Independent | Mark Wilson | 96,972 | 7.39 | |
| Independent | David Golden | 37,727 | 2.87 | |
| Total votes | 1,312,727 | 100.00 | ||
General election
[edit]Post-primary endorsements
[edit]Mark Milscia (R)
Newspapers
Polling
[edit]| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size |
Margin of error |
Pat McCarthy (D) |
Mark Miloscia (R) |
Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elway Poll[12] | October 20–22, 2016 | 502 (RV) | ± 4.5% | 39% | 29% | 32% |
| Elway Poll[13] | August 9–13, 2016 | 500 (RV) | ± 4.5% | 37% | 29% | 34% |
Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Pat McCarthy | 1,597,011 | 52.31 | –0.64 | |
| Republican | Mark Miloscia | 1,455,771 | 47.69 | +0.64 | |
| Total votes | 3,052,782 | 100.00 | N/A | ||
| Democratic hold | |||||
By county
[edit]| County[15] | Pat McCarthy
Democratic |
Mark Miloscia
Republican |
Margin | Total votes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Adams | 1,449 | 32.42% | 3,020 | 67.58% | -1,571 | -35.15% | 4,469 |
| Asotin | 3,604 | 38.77% | 5,693 | 61.23% | -2,089 | -22.47% | 9,297 |
| Benton | 27,675 | 35.65% | 49,957 | 64.35% | -22,282 | -28.70% | 77,632 |
| Chelan | 12,285 | 39.13% | 19,109 | 60.87% | -6,824 | -21.74% | 31,394 |
| Clallam | 17,493 | 46.68% | 19,980 | 53.32% | -2,487 | -6.64% | 37,473 |
| Clark | 89,618 | 46.78% | 101,962 | 53.22% | -12,344 | -6.44% | 191,580 |
| Columbia | 616 | 29.98% | 1,439 | 70.02% | -823 | -40.05% | 2,055 |
| Cowlitz | 19,799 | 45.70% | 23,522 | 54.30% | -3,723 | -8.59% | 43,321 |
| Douglas | 4,980 | 33.65% | 9,821 | 66.35% | -4,841 | -32.71% | 14,801 |
| Ferry | 1,242 | 36.38% | 2,172 | 63.62% | -930 | -27.24% | 3,414 |
| Franklin | 9,011 | 38.95% | 14,125 | 61.05% | -5,114 | -22.10% | 23,136 |
| Garfield | 328 | 27.99% | 844 | 72.01% | -516 | -44.03% | 1,172 |
| Grant | 8,557 | 31.52% | 18,590 | 68.48% | -10,033 | -36.96% | 27,147 |
| Grays Harbor | 13,455 | 49.62% | 13,660 | 50.38% | -205 | -0.76% | 27,115 |
| Island | 19,666 | 46.89% | 21,395 | 52.11% | -1,729 | -4.21% | 41,061 |
| Jefferson | 12,420 | 63.88% | 7,023 | 36.12% | 5,397 | 27.76% | 19,443 |
| King | 591,708 | 63.66% | 337,754 | 36.34% | 253,954 | 27.32% | 929,462 |
| Kitsap | 60,572 | 50.56% | 59,223 | 49.44% | 1,349 | 1.13% | 119,795 |
| Kittitas | 7,139 | 39.98% | 10,717 | 60.02% | -3,578 | -20.04% | 17,856 |
| Klickitat | 4,354 | 42.40% | 5,914 | 57.60% | -1,560 | -15.19% | 10,268 |
| Lewis | 10,813 | 33.06% | 21,896 | 66.94% | -11,083 | -33.88% | 32,709 |
| Lincoln | 1,422 | 25.99% | 4,050 | 74.01% | -2,628 | -48.03% | 5,472 |
| Mason | 12,661 | 46.99% | 14,284 | 53.01% | -1,623 | -6.02% | 26,945 |
| Okanogan | 6,761 | 41.48% | 9,540 | 58.52% | -2,779 | -17.05% | 16,301 |
| Pacific | 4,904 | 48.79% | 5,147 | 51.21% | -243 | -2.42% | 10,051 |
| Pend Oreille | 2,295 | 35.17% | 4,230 | 64.83% | -1,935 | -29.66% | 6,525 |
| Pierce | 171,823 | 51.02% | 164,971 | 48.98% | 6,852 | 2.03% | 336,794 |
| San Juan | 6,821 | 66.81% | 3,388 | 33.19% | 3,433 | 33.63% | 10,209 |
| Skagit | 25,433 | 47.49% | 28,119 | 52.51% | -2,686 | -5.02% | 53,552 |
| Skamania | 2,343 | 44.17% | 2,962 | 55.83% | -619 | -11.67% | 5,305 |
| Snohomish | 167,967 | 50.94% | 161,752 | 49.06% | 6,215 | 1.88% | 329,719 |
| Spokane | 95,689 | 43.70% | 123,279 | 56.30% | -27,590 | -12.60% | 218,968 |
| Stevens | 6,617 | 30.28% | 15,236 | 69.72% | -8,619 | -39.44% | 21,853 |
| Thurston | 66,931 | 54.04% | 56,918 | 45.96% | 10,013 | 8.08% | 123,849 |
| Wahkiakum | 897 | 41.82% | 1,248 | 58.18% | -351 | -16.36% | 2,145 |
| Walla Walla | 9,868 | 40.84% | 14,292 | 59.16% | -4,424 | -18.31% | 24,160 |
| Whatcom | 57,669 | 54.88% | 47,409 | 45.12% | 10,260 | 9.76% | 105,078 |
| Whitman | 7,779 | 47.07% | 8,748 | 52.93% | -969 | -5.86% | 16,527 |
| Yakima | 32,347 | 43.29% | 42,382 | 56.71% | -10,035 | -13.43% | 74,729 |
| Totals | 1,597,011 | 52.31% | 1,455,771 | 47.69% | 141,240 | 4.63% | 3,052,782 |
Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican
- Cowlitz (largest city: Longview)
- Grays Harbor (largest city: Aberdeen)
- Pacific (largest city: Raymond)
By congressional district
[edit]McCarthy won five of ten congressional districts, with the remaining five going to Miloscia, including one that elected a Democrat.[14]
| District | McCarthy | Miloscia | Representative |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 48% | 52% | Suzan DelBene |
| 2nd | 55% | 45% | Rick Larsen |
| 3rd | 45% | 55% | Jaime Herrera Beutler |
| 4th | 38% | 62% | Dan Newhouse |
| 5th | 42% | 58% | Cathy McMorris Rodgers |
| 6th | 53% | 47% | Derek Kilmer |
| 7th | 74% | 26% | Jim McDermott |
| Pramila Jayapal | |||
| 8th | 44% | 56% | Dave Reichert |
| 9th | 63% | 37% | Adam Smith |
| 10th | 53% | 47% | Denny Heck |
References
[edit]- ^ a b c Santos, Melissa (May 20, 2016). "After Troy Kelley trial, a battle for who will take over State Auditor's Office". Tacoma News-Tribune. Retrieved May 30, 2016.
- ^ Young, Bob (November 8, 2016). "Pierce County Executive Pat McCarthy appears headed to a win in state auditor's contest". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on December 22, 2024. Retrieved October 25, 2025.
- ^ https://www.heraldnet.com/news/watkins-concedes-in-state-auditor-race/
- ^ Connelly, Joel (February 23, 2016). "Indicted State Auditor Troy Kelley won't be impeached by the Legislature". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved October 25, 2025.
- ^ https://www.thenewstribune.com/news/politics-government/article60745171.html
- ^ https://www.kuow.org/stories/seattle-attorney-joins-race-washington-state-auditor/
- ^ Brunner, Jim (October 8, 2015). "State Sen. Mark Miloscia to run for state auditor". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on March 3, 2021. Retrieved October 25, 2025.
- ^ a b https://komonews.com/news/local/candidates-for-state-auditor-vow-to-restore-offices-credibility
- ^ Editorial Board, The Seattle Times (July 10, 2016). "The Times recommends: Jeff Sprung for state auditor". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on August 11, 2024. Retrieved October 25, 2025.
- ^ Wyman, Kim (August 2, 2016). "State Auditor". Secretary of State of Washington. Archived from the original on July 15, 2025. Retrieved October 25, 2025.
- ^ Editorial Board, The Seattle Times (October 13, 2016). "The Times recommends: Mark Miloscia for state auditor". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on February 28, 2024. Retrieved October 25, 2025.
- ^ Elway Poll
- ^ Elway Poll
- ^ a b "2016 General Data". sos.wa.gov. Archived from the original on March 15, 2025.
- ^ Wyman, Kim (November 8, 2016). "State Auditor - County Results". Secretary of State of Washington. Archived from the original on June 27, 2025. Retrieved October 25, 2025.