Washington: Don Barlow

Spokane's 6th Legislative District has proven to be the state's most evenly divided swing district in 2008. In addition to both the the district's races finishing with margins of just a few percentage points, there is a good chance that both incumbents will be unseated. The catch is, the 6th has a split delegation.

6th Legislative District candidate Kevin Parker has won the Republicans their first switchover seat of 2008 in the state House.

Parker’s race against Rep. Don Barlow was called by the Spokesman-Review today with Parker ahead by almost 3,000 votes.

"We’re excited," Parker told PolitickerWA.com about his victory. "We also have a deep awareness that the real work is just beginning."

DENVER - The Democratic Speaker of the state House of Representatives, Seattle's Frank Chopp, is well known in political circles for his planning and dedication to building a long-term Democratic majority in Olympia. Just like with the Republicans, every other year provides a chance to gradually build up or chip away at the current lead, depending on what side you are on.

But despite all the projections and planning, did last week's "top two" primary results change the leadership's picture of which races to focus on going into November? Chopp says no.

May is the second in a monthly PolitickerWA.com series of the financial status of some of the state's top races.

Here is how things stand as of May 31, 2008. The first number listed is contributions, the second number is expenditures and the third number is the difference between the two. Precluding any unusual circumstances, that third number is equal to cash on hand. The candidate with the most cash on hand is listed at the top of each section.