Newhouse Behind Trump Endorsed Sessler In 4th District Primary

Early voting results show 4th District Republican Congressman Dan Newhouse will face stiff competition for reelection from Trump endorsed candidate Jerrod Sessler. 

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Sessler currently leads Newhouse by a 31-to-24 percent margin in the primary election with a third Republican, Tiffany Smiley, in third place with 19 percent of the vote. 

Two Democrats, Mary Baechler and Birdie" Jane Muchlinski together account for only about 21 percent of the vote. 

The top two vote getters in the primary advance to the November election, which means Newhouse could face an uphill battle with fellow Republican Sessler in the conservative leaning district. 

Newhouse was one of 10 Republicans who voted to impeach Trump after the Jan. 6th, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol.  

He's one of only two of them who are still in office with the others either not running for reelection or having been defeated in 2022.   

Former President Donald Trump endorsed Sessler for the seat back in April while calling Newhouse a “weak and pathetic RINO” in a social media post.  

Trump endorsed another Republican candidate in 2022, Loren Culp, who failed to advance to the general election.  

Culp came in third in Washington state’s top-two all-party primary system behind Democrat Doug White, who was later defeated in the general election.  

Sessler finished fourth in the 2022 primary with 12.3 percent of the vote. Six Republicans opposed Newhouse in that race.   

Sessler says Newhouse betrayed his voters by joining Democrats to impeach President Trump in 2021. He's also referred to the January 6 riots as "a set-up."  

“Jerrod Sessler is a fantastic candidate and will be a GREAT Congressman for Washington State’s 4th Congressional District,’ Trump said in a Truth Social post.

Sessler is a U.S. Navy veteran and former NASCAR driver.