Each week on The Newsfeed, host Paris Jackson and a team of veteran journalists dive deep into one topic and provide impactful reporting, interviews and community insights from sources you can trust. Each day this week, this post will be updated with a new story from the team.
WA 3rd District Congressional race deemed a toss-up
Story published 10/05/2026
This week, we dive into pressing local and national issues concerning voters – after Cascade PBS hosted a recent live taping of the NPR Politics Podcast at Cornish Playhouse here in Seattle.
Among the wide-ranging topics, the hosts Miles Parks, Mara Liasson, and Tamara Keith discussed the tight Washington 3rd Congressional District race between Democratic incumbent Democrat Marie Gluesenkamp Perez and Republican John Braun.
The three NPR Politics Podcast hosts delved into Washington’s high-stakes congressional race that includes Vancouver and Longview.
Tamara Keith: They are both small business owners. They both speak about tariffs. Braun told our colleague, Sage Miller, that tariffs is an issue that he'd like toaddress with President Trump if he gets to Washington. This seat is rated as a toss-up. It is one of about 21 toss-up races according to the Cook Political Report; in the whole country. Out of 435, there are 21 toss ups; that tells you just sort of how small this map is. You know, this is a seat that had been Republican, she flipped it blue in 2022. Gluesenkamp Perez has clashed with Democrats somewhat regularly, um, because she is far more moderate.”
Miles Parks: “Well, you have to, I mean, it, Donald Trump has carried, has carried this district in 16, 20 and 24. So you really have no choice if you want to win elections, but to clash with Democrats, I feel like."
Keith: “Right. And, we talk about how Democrats, the Democratic Party has a lot of challenges. If the party wants to be long-term sustainable, they have to win in red districts or currently red districts and red states.”
All this week, we’ll bring your more excerpts from the recent live recording of the NPR Politics podcast in Seattle, which dives further into the key issues for voters this election season. You’ll also hear from some local voters who attended the event and shared their biggest concerns.
