2020 Washington Secretary of State election

2020 Washington Secretary of State election
November 3, 2020
 
Nominee Kim Wyman Gael Tarleton
Party Republican Democratic
Popular vote 2,116,141 1,826,710
Percentage 53.61% 46.27%
Wyman:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%
Tarleton:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%
Tie:      40–50%      50%      No data
Secretary of State before election

Kim Wyman
Republican

 Elected Secretary of State

Kim Wyman
Republican

The 2020 Washington Secretary of State election was held on November 3, 2020. Incumbent Republican Kim Wyman won reelection over Democratic nominee Gael Tarleton, the two having received the most votes in an August 2020 primary election.[1] Wyman became the only Republican to hold statewide office in Washington and the entire West Coast.[2] As of 2026, this was the last time a Republican won a statewide election in Washington.

Primary election

Endorsements

Kim Wyman (R)
Statewide officials

Newspapers

Gael Tarleton (D)
U.S. senators
Statewide officials
2020 Washington Secretary of State primary debate
No. Date Host Moderator Link Republican Democratic Progressive Independent
Key:
 P  Participant   A  Absent   N  Not invited   I  Invited  W  Withdrawn
Kim Wyman Gael Tarleton Gentry Lange Ed Minger
1 Jul. 20, 2020 KSPS
League of Women Voters
of Washington
The Spokesman-Review		 Kristi Gorenson YouTube P P P P

Results

County results
  Wyman
  •   50–60%
  •   60–70%
  •   70–80%
  •   80–90%
  Tarleton
  •   40–50%
  •   50–60%
  •   60–70%
Congressional district results
  Wyman
  •   50–60%
  •   60–70%
  Tarleton
  •   40–50%
  •   50–60%
  •   60–70%
Top-two primary results[6]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Kim Wyman (incumbent) 1,238,455 50.89%
Democratic Gael Tarleton 1,053,584 43.29%
Independent Ed Minger 87,982 3.62%
Progressive Gentry Lange 51,826 2.13%
Write-in 1,919 0.08%
Total votes 2,433,766 100.00%

By county

County results
County[7] Kim Wyman

Republican

 Gael Tarleton

Democratic

 Various candidates

Other parties

 Margin Total votes
# % # % # % # %
Adams 2,640 78.22% 590 17.48% 145 4.30% 2,050 60.74% 3,375
Asotin 4,451 65.85% 1,910 28.26% 398 5.89% 2,541 37.59% 6,759
Benton 41,594 68.07% 15,922 26.06% 3,592 5.88% 25,672 42.01% 61,108
Chelan 18,239 66.24% 7,902 28.70% 1,395 5.07% 10,337 37.54% 27,536
Clallam 17,138 53.71% 12,892 40.40% 1,881 5.89% 4,246 13.31% 31,911
Clark 79,412 53.12% 60,747 40.64% 9,334 6.24% 18,665 12.49% 149,493
Columbia 1,252 76.25% 320 19.49% 70 4.26% 932 56.76% 1,642
Cowlitz 22,095 61.30% 11,362 31.52% 2,585 7.17% 10,733 29.78% 36,042
Douglas 9,656 72.68% 2,980 22.43% 649 4.89% 6,676 50.25% 13,285
Ferry 2,111 67.49% 850 27.17% 167 5.34% 1,261 40.31% 3,128
Franklin 12,414 67.78% 4,892 26.71% 1,009 5.51% 7,522 41.07% 18,315
Garfield 778 78.74% 163 16.50% 47 4.76% 615 62.25% 988
Grant 16,490 75.09% 4,214 19.19% 1,256 5.72% 12,276 55.90% 21,960
Grays Harbor 14,445 60.32% 7,888 32.94% 1,613 6.74% 6,557 27.38% 23,946
Island 18,497 51.86% 15,183 42.57% 1,989 5.58% 3,314 9.29% 35,669
Jefferson 6,464 37.80% 9,597 56.12% 1,041 6.09% -3,133 -18.32% 17,102
King 273,994 37.42% 422,227 57.67% 35,942 4.91% -148,233 -20.25% 732,163
Kitsap 48,724 50.82% 40,893 42.65% 6,258 6.53% 7,831 8.17% 95,875
Kittitas 10,384 65.27% 4,534 28.50% 992 6.24% 5,850 36.77% 15,910
Klickitat 4,924 59.63% 2,831 34.29% 502 6.08% 2,093 25.35% 8,257
Lewis 22,192 73.90% 6,119 20.38% 1,717 5.72% 16,073 53.53% 30,028
Lincoln 3,818 80.58% 736 15.53% 184 3.88% 3,082 65.05% 4,738
Mason 14,399 60.94% 7,567 32.02% 1,663 7.04% 6,832 28.91% 23,629
Okanogan 8,452 62.55% 4,330 32.05% 730 5.40% 4,122 30.51% 13,512
Pacific 4,993 54.56% 3,586 39.19% 572 6.25% 1,407 15.38% 9,151
Pend Oreille 3,682 69.60% 1,279 24.18% 329 6.22% 2,403 45.43% 5,290
Pierce 148,111 55.34% 101,989 38.11% 17,537 6.55% 46,122 17.23% 267,637
San Juan 2,872 32.24% 5,525 62.02% 511 5.74% -2,653 -29.78% 8,908
Skagit 25,636 55.66% 17,797 38.64% 2,625 5.70% 7,839 17.02% 46,058
Skamania 2,386 57.26% 1,530 36.72% 251 6.02% 856 20.54% 4,167
Snohomish 130,108 51.03% 107,388 42.12% 17,464 6.85% 22,720 8.91% 254,960
Spokane 95,637 58.40% 58,530 35.74% 9,586 5.85% 37,107 22.66% 163,753
Stevens 13,550 74.25% 3,678 20.15% 1,021 5.59% 9,872 54.10% 18,249
Thurston 61,034 58.03% 37,716 35.86% 6,435 6.12% 23,318 22.17% 105,185
Wahkiakum 1,200 60.70% 654 33.08% 123 6.22% 546 27.62% 1,977
Walla Walla 12,027 61.55% 6,303 32.26% 1,210 6.19% 5,724 29.29% 19,540
Whatcom 42,486 46.82% 42,742 47.10% 5,513 6.08% -256 -0.28% 90,741
Whitman 6,273 56.18% 4,095 36.68% 797 7.14% 2,178 19.51% 11,165
Yakima 33,897 66.97% 14,123 27.90% 2,594 5.13% 19,774 39.07% 50,614
Totals 1,238,455 50.89% 1,053,584 43.29% 141,727 5.82% 184,871 7.60% 2,433,766

By congressional district

District[8] Wyman Tarleton Representative
1st 53% 42% Suzan DelBene
2nd 46% 47% Rick Larsen
3rd 58% 36% Jaime Herrera Beutler
4th 69% 26% Dan Newhouse
5th 61% 33% Cathy McMorris Rodgers
6th 51% 43% Derek Kilmer
7th 28% 67% Pramila Jayapal
8th 59% 35% Kim Schrier
9th 38% 57% Adam Smith
10th 56% 37% Denny Heck

General election

Predictions

Source Ranking As of
The Cook Political Report[9] Lean R June 25, 2020

Debate

2020 Washington Secretary of State debate
No. Date Host Moderator Link Republican Democratic
Key:
 P  Participant   A  Absent   N  Not invited   I  Invited  W  Withdrawn
Kim Wyman Gael Tarleton
1 Sep. 19, 2020 League of Women Voters
of Washington
The Spokesman-Review		 Jim Camden YouTube P P

Polling

Graphical summary

Poll source Date(s)
administered		 Sample
size[a]		 Margin
of error		 Kim
Wyman (R)		 Gael
Tarleton (D)		 Undecided
Public Policy Polling[10] October 14–15, 2020 610 (LV) ± 4% 49% 43% 8%
SurveyUSA[11] October 8–10, 2020 591 (LV) ± 5.2% 45% 40% 14%

Results

2020 Washington Secretary of State election[12]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Kim Wyman (incumbent) 2,116,141 53.61% –1.13%
Democratic Gael Tarleton 1,826,710 46.27% +1.01%
Write-in 4,666 0.12% N/A
Total votes 3,947,517 100.00% N/A
Republican hold

By county

County results
County[13] Kim Wyman

Republican

 Gael Tarleton

Democratic

 Write-in

Various

 Margin Total votes
# % # % # % # %
Adams 4,188 73.73% 1,473 25.93% 19 0.33% 2,715 47.80% 5,680
Asotin 7,935 68.70% 3,587 31.06% 28 0.24% 4,348 37.65% 11,550
Benton 69,494 69.99% 29,698 29.91% 106 0.11% 39,796 40.08% 99,298
Chelan 27,338 65.19% 14,565 34.73% 33 0.08% 12,773 30.46% 41,936
Clallam 27,675 57.77% 20,181 42.13% 50 0.10% 7,494 15.64% 47,906
Clark 148,502 56.58% 113,626 43.29% 329 0.13% 34,876 13.29% 262,457
Columbia 1,880 78.11% 525 21.81% 2 0.08% 1,355 56.29% 2,407
Cowlitz 37,669 65.02% 20,199 34.87% 64 0.11% 17,470 30.16% 57,932
Douglas 14,630 70.83% 5,999 29.05% 25 0.12% 8,631 41.79% 20,654
Ferry 2,949 70.16% 1,246 29.65% 8 0.19% 1,703 40.52% 4,203
Franklin 20,478 64.74% 11,115 35.14% 36 0.11% 9,363 29.60% 31,629
Garfield 1,113 78.55% 301 21.24% 3 0.21% 812 57.30% 1,417
Grant 26,794 73.15% 9,764 26.66% 70 0.19% 17,030 46.49% 36,628
Grays Harbor 23,509 62.82% 13,854 37.02% 57 0.15% 9,655 25.80% 37,420
Island 29,295 56.06% 22,895 43.82% 63 0.12% 6,400 12.25% 52,253
Jefferson 10,063 41.42% 14,217 58.52% 14 0.06% -4,154 -17.10% 24,294
King 482,387 41.36% 682,761 58.54% 1,189 0.10% -200,374 -17.18% 1,166,337
Kitsap 83,886 54.57% 69,638 45.30% 205 0.13% 14,248 9.27% 153,729
Kittitas 17,007 66.67% 8,487 33.27% 17 0.07% 8,520 33.40% 25,511
Klickitat 8,022 61.36% 5,025 38.44% 26 0.20% 2,997 22.93% 13,073
Lewis 32,661 74.07% 11,353 25.75% 79 0.18% 21,308 48.33% 44,093
Lincoln 5,485 79.84% 1,378 20.06% 7 0.10% 4,107 59.78% 6,870
Mason 22,891 63.28% 13,216 36.53% 69 0.19% 9,675 26.74% 36,176
Okanogan 12,949 62.80% 7,651 37.11% 18 0.09% 5,298 25.70% 20,618
Pacific 7,935 58.13% 5,685 41.65% 31 0.23% 2,250 16.48% 13,651
Pend Oreille 5,992 72.48% 2,261 27.35% 14 0.17% 3,731 45.13% 8,267
Pierce 257,698 57.28% 191,684 42.61% 498 0.11% 66,014 14.67% 449,880
San Juan 4,670 36.58% 8,089 63.35% 9 0.07% -3,419 -26.78% 12,768
Skagit 40,861 58.09% 29,398 41.79% 81 0.12% 11,463 16.30% 70,340
Skamania 4,251 60.23% 2,793 39.57% 14 0.20% 1,458 20.66% 7,058
Snohomish 230,222 54.14% 194,563 45.75% 464 0.11% 35,659 8.39% 425,249
Spokane 171,171 60.34% 112,056 39.50% 462 0.16% 59,115 20.84% 283,689
Stevens 20,963 75.83% 6,656 24.08% 27 0.10% 14,307 51.75% 27,646
Thurston 97,311 59.64% 65,627 40.22% 224 0.14% 31,684 19.42% 163,162
Wahkiakum 1,872 65.39% 984 34.37% 7 0.24% 888 31.02% 2,863
Walla Walla 19,728 65.35% 10,430 34.55% 32 0.11% 9,298 30.80% 30,190
Whatcom 65,592 48.41% 69,728 51.46% 171 0.13% -4,136 -3.05% 135,491
Whitman 11,290 55.58% 8,994 44.28% 29 0.14% 2,296 11.30% 20,313
Yakima 57,785 62.22% 35,008 37.69% 86 0.09% 22,777 24.52% 92,879
Totals 2,116,141 53.61% 1,826,710 46.27% 4,666 0.12% 289,431 7.33% 3,947,517


Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

By congressional district

Wyman won seven of ten congressional districts, including four that elected Democrats.[14]

District Wyman Tarleton Representative
1st 55% 45% Suzan DelBene
2nd 49% 51% Rick Larsen
3rd 60% 40% Jaime Herrera Beutler
4th 67% 33% Dan Newhouse
5th 63% 37% Cathy McMorris Rodgers
6th 54% 46% Derek Kilmer
7th 32% 68% Pramila Jayapal
8th 61% 39% Kim Schrier
9th 41% 59% Adam Smith
10th 58% 42% Denny Heck
Marilyn Strickland

Notes

  1. ↑ Key:
    A – all adults
    RV – registered voters
    LV – likely voters
    V – unclear

References

  1. ↑ Primary results
  2. ↑ Santos, Melissa (November 11, 2020). "How Republican Kim Wyman keeps winning in blue Washington state". Cascade PBS. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 O'Sullivan, Joseph (December 9, 2019). "Election security is front and center as Washington Secretary of State Kim Wyman and challenger Gael Tarleton face off". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on August 18, 2025. Retrieved August 24, 2026.
  4. ↑ Editorial Board, The Seattle Times (July 2, 2020). "The Times recommends: Kim Wyman for Secretary of State". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on October 20, 2022. Retrieved October 22, 2025.
  5. ↑ O'Sullivan, Joseph (December 9, 2019). "Seattle state Rep. Gael Tarleton to announce run for Washington secretary of state". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on July 24, 2025. Retrieved August 24, 2026. Tarleton starts her campaign with the endorsement of Democratic Attorney General Bob Ferguson.
  6. ↑ Wyman, Kim (August 21, 2020). "Canvass of the Returns of the Primary Held on August 4, 2020" (PDF). Secretary of State of Washington. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 15, 2025. Retrieved July 15, 2025.
  7. ↑ Wyman, Kim (August 4, 2020). "Secretary of State - County Results". Secretary of State of Washington. Archived from the original on December 21, 2025. Retrieved August 24, 2026.
  8. ↑ "Congressional and Legislative District Breakdowns". sos.wa.gov. Archived from the original on March 19, 2025.
  9. ↑ "An Updated Look at Handicapping the 2020 Secretary of State Elections". The Cook Political Report. Retrieved September 13, 2019.
  10. ↑ Public Policy Polling
  11. ↑ SurveyUSA
  12. ↑ Wyman, Kim (December 1, 2020). "Canvass of the Returns of the General Election Held on November 3, 2020" (PDF). Secretary of State of Washington. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 29, 2025. Retrieved July 15, 2025.
  13. ↑ Wyman, Kim (November 3, 2020). "Secretary of State - County Results". Secretary of State of Washington. Archived from the original on June 16, 2025. Retrieved August 6, 2025.
  14. ↑ "2020Gen Results by Congressional District" (PDF). sos.wa.gov. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 22, 2024.
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