Candidate filing week in Washington kicked off Monday. Here are some prominent contenders in this year's statewide races

May 6—OLYMPIA — Monday marked the beginning of candidate filing week in the state, opening the doors for Washingtonians to officially throw their hats in the ring for more than 400 federal, state, judicial, legislative and county offices up for grabs in the November election.

Two of the top contenders for state governor declared candidacy in what will be the state's first incumbent-free gubernatorial race since 2012. Candidates vying to take over the seat of outgoing Gov. Jay Inslee have spent a combined total of nearly $7 million on their campaigns to date, making it the most expensive statewide race by a long shot.

The second-most pricey race for a state office is that of attorney general. There, candidates so far have spent more than $2 million on campaigns altogether.

Also up for grabs in November's election are the state offices of treasurer, commissioner of public lands, lieutenant governor, superintendent of public instruction, auditor, secretary of state and three soon-to-be-vacant seats on the Washington Supreme Court.

Candidates who hope to appear on the November ballot have until 5 p.m. Friday to formally declare their candidacies with the Secretary of State's office.

In the race for governor, 13 people had formally entered the contest by the end of business Monday.

Democratic front-runner Bob Ferguson was among the list of gubernatorial hopefuls who turned in their paperwork Monday. Ferguson, who has held the office of state attorney general since 2013, has raised the most cash out of all candidates for governor so far. To date, he's reportedly raked in upwards of $6.5 million in campaign contributions.

Democratic candidate Mark Mullet also formally placed his bid for governor Monday. Mullet, a small business owner from Issaquah, has served in the state Senate since 2013. Mullet so far has raised more than $1 million in campaign donations.

Mullet is campaigning as a more moderate Democratic alternative to Ferguson, casting a net he believes will snag Democratic voters as well as folks further toward the political center and right. Mullet aligns with Ferguson on some social issues such as abortion access and gun control. But he differs on others, including the Blake decision of 2021 that decriminalized simple possession of illegal drugs.

That year, "Bob Ferguson was pushing us to follow the path of Oregon and decriminalize possession of dangerous drugs: fentanyl, meth, heroine," Mullet said in an interview. "He thought the Oregon example was a good one. I was the Democratic state senator who had the courage to say, 'No, I disagree with that. I don't think we should legalize possession of fentanyl in public places."

Mullet also considers himself more fiscally conservative, he said in an interview Monday afternoon.

Mullet said he opposes the state's new long-term care insurance tax, a program that Ferguson supports.

In his campaign, Ferguson has touted his work as attorney general to secure millions of dollars in settlements from pharmaceutical giants who knowingly preyed on U.S. residents by lying about the addictive properties of prescription opioids such as OxyContin.

Ferguson has also advertised his tough-on-Trump track record in the office of attorney general on the campaign trail.

The two state Republican Party front-runners for governor had yet to formally file their candidacies by Monday evening.

Republican candidate Semi Bird is the first Black gubernatorial candidate endorsed by the Washington State Republican Party. As of Monday, he'd raised nearly $500,000 in campaign contributions.

Bird clinched that nomination last month at a chaotic statewide Republican Party convention in Spokane in which party leadership initially tried to forego making a gubernatorial endorsement altogether.

Along with Bird, former U.S. Rep. Dave Reichert is the other Republican front-runner in the race for governor. Reichert did not show up to the state Republican Party convention and ultimately withdrew his name from the party endorsement ballot, calling party leadership "unorganized" and "deceitful."

So far, Reichert has raised more than $2.5 million in campaign donations.

In the race to replace the attorney general spot that Ferguson will vacate, two Democrats placed formal bids Monday. Nick Brown, a district lawyer from Seattle, will face off with state Sen. Manka Dhingra, of Redmond.

As wildfire seasons in Washington continue to burn hotter and last longer, another high-profile state race this year is for commissioner of public lands. Current sitting commissioner Hilary Franz announced last year that she will not seek re-election in November as she vies for a seat in the U.S. Congress.

As of Monday, three candidates had filed their paperwork in that race. U.S. Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler and Sue Kuehl Pederson, both Republicans, are facing off with state Sen. Kevin Van De Wege, a Democrat.

Last month, Kuehl Pederson secured the state Republican Party's nomination for the office. At the convention, the former environmental analyst told voters she wants to make logging a more prominent part of the state's economy.

In other statewide races, incumbents filed for re-election as expected, including Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal, Lieutenant Governor Denny Heck, Treasurer Mike Pellicciotti and Auditor Pat McCarthy.

Washington's primary elections for state offices will be held Aug. 6. The general election this year will take place Nov. 5 for the state offices, along with the Congressional seats and U.S. presidential race.

Ellen Dennis' work is funded in part by members of the Spokane community via the Community Journalism and Civic Engagement Fund. This story can be republished by other organizations for free under a Creative Commons license. For more information on this, please contact our newspaper's managing editor.