Brown to hold community forum in race for Congress

Brian Neale by Brian Neale

With more than two months until the November election, the race for the 5th Congressional seat appears to be ready to heat up again.

The seat is currently held by Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers but Democrat nominee Lisa Brown is mounting a strong challenge to the incumbent.

Tuesday afternoon, Spokane County Auditor Vicki Dalton certified the August Primary Election. Brown hauled in 69,064 votes or 48.46 percent, to McMorris Rodgers’ 66,562 votes or 46.70 percent. District wide, McMorris Rodgers garnered 99,689 votes or 49.29 percent to Brown’s 91,738 or 45.36 percent of the vote.

The Secretary of State will certify the election on Friday.

Tuesday, the Brown Campaign announced she will hold an open forum in a non-ticketed venue. It’s scheduled to be Thursday, August 23, at Spokane Valley Event Center, 10514 E. Sprague. The forum begins at 5:30 p.m.

Congresswoman McMorris Rodgers will also hold a town hall on Thursday. Her office says the event is ticketed because of the size of the facility. A spokesperson says if people show up without a ticket they would be let in, but there’s no guarantee.

In a press release announcing the Thursday forum, Brown’s campaign was critical of the Congresswoman for not attending more forums and agreeing to more debates. Brown’s campaign says there are two debates scheduled, two are in negotiation for dates, and four others are awaiting response from Rep. McMorris Rodgers office.

A spokesperson for the Congresswoman says she has agreed to four debates, one more than past election years and has held nearly a dozen town hall events in 2018.

While Brown is able to campaign full time in eastern Washington, McMorris Rodgers’ office says Congress will be in session for most of September and two weeks in October, meaning the Congresswoman will be working in Washington DC instead of working the campaign trail.

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