Award-winning Seattle writer Timothy Egan has a great piece in the New York Times in which he ruminates on the people who, it was feared, would not vote for Obama, but did. "He became only the second Democrat since Franklin Roosevelt to win more than 51 percent of the popular vote not because he’s black, but because he is smarter, with better ideas, and showed leadership under fire. This was a victory for meritocracy." more ›

We all know the results of last night's election, however it is what all the blogs were talking about yesterday... So, we hope you enjoy your very last (for this cycle) election-heavy neighborhood news.
• West Seattle Blog hunkered down at The Skylark Cafe and made it Election HQ to watch the results roll in last night.
• The support for Obama moved over from Basset Hounds to dogs in general, according to the Capitol Hill Seattle Blog.
• The Central District News faced long lines when voting yesterday at TT Minor. Our busy busy friends, the Geeky Swedes of My Ballard, PhinneyWood, and The Magnolia Voice also reported long lines and lots of voters in their respective neighborhoods.

Throughout the campaign we have been gathering the top political writers in the country, and asking them to discuss the presidential race. Today they reflect on the campaign and what they expect on Election Day. more ›

For many Seattle residents, the Death With Dignity Initiative (I-1000) gets a heartfelt, fairly immediate vote of approval. P-I columnist Joel Connelly is not so sure. Today's paper includes Connelly's long-ish rant about I-1000 supporters' misguiding ads on the radio, and he awards the initiative his "Sheer Gall Award" for its advertisements' "anti-Catholic" "landslide of distortions." We suggest you read his fact-checks and decide for yourself. more ›

Throughout the campaign we have been gathering the top political writers in the country, and asking them to discuss the presidential race. Today they discuss the Republican ticket and look at tonight's vice-presidential debate. more ›

GET SMARTIE: So you think you're a smartypants, eh? And you want to see that smartypants professor in the white house? Then you're in luck! Go use your brain for Obama tonight, and participate in a trivia night fundraiser at the Hi-Life in Ballard. The entry fee is a bit high for trivia night at a bar, but excessively low for a political fundraiser. Just think of how those Eastsiders paid $1k/plate when Cindy McCain was in town, and the $20 you drop for trivia will seem like chump change. UPDATE: Smarties for Obama is sold out. Sorry, but also...awesome! more ›

Though the political news of the day is most certainly McCain's ploy to "suspend" his campaign and delay the first presidential debate as well as the VP debate in order to concentrate on the economic crisis, there's other news out today about the plight of Republican candidates this year. According to the New York Times, Washington State Democrats are suing to force Republican candidate for governor Dino Rossi to list his party affiliation on the ballot as "Republican" and not "GOP" which apparently polls higher. more ›

Sudden celeb Sarah Palin, John McCain's Vice Presidential pick, has canceled a scheduled appearance next week in Seattle. Palin was the guest of honor (see: big money draw) at a fundraiser set for the 24th, but she won't be attending due to 'scheduling conflicts.' Palin will likely be in Michigan or some other swing state stumping for McCain. Since you won't be able to see the Tina Fey look-a-like in the flesh, we leave you this: the Sarah Palin baby name generator. If Sarah Palin was your mom what would your name be? Henceforth, we'd like to be called by our Alaskan name, Charcoal Sniper Palin. more ›

Howard Dean's visit to Renton this weekend was really only the beginning of what is sure to be a lively seven weeks until the election. The first celebrity deathmatch pitting Obama versus McCain on national TV is still 11 days away. But if you want to wet your chops with a little political debate action this week, you're in luck. Our own homestate smackdown will be broadcast on KOMO-4 this Saturday, Sept. 20, at 9 p.m. It's the first of five scheduled debates, so we suggest you get to work on the rules for your Gregoire v. Rossi drinking game. We'll start you off: anyone mentions the viaduct, you drink. more ›

According to a King5-commissioned poll, Barack Obama's lead in Washington is diminishing. Obama's lead has dropped from double digits in June to only four percentage points in the most recent poll. If the election was held today, 49% of Washingtonians would vote for Barack Obama and 45% would cast their vote for John McCain. more ›

According to an email we got from the Washington State Democrats today, the state's Attorney General, Rob McKenna, laid out a plan for Dino Rossi to beat Christine Gregoire in November for state delegates at the Republican National Convention in Minnesota. In short, according to McKenna, McCain-Palin needs to carry Washington by 10-12 points. "If he fails to carry it by ten or twelve points, Dino doesn't win." Maybe it's scary thoughts like that which convinced the state's Republican party to put out only a "vaguely worded press release" when their booth got trashed at Bumbershoot this weekend. more ›

Throughout the campaign we have been gathering the top political writers in the country, and asking them to discuss the presidential race. Today they discuss the Democratic National Convention. more ›

Throughout the campaign we have been gathering the top political writers in the country, and asking them to discuss the presidential race. Today they discuss the media’s role in American politics. more ›

If you're not, you better get ready. Michelle Obama, the future First Lady of the United States, will be joining Washington Governor Christine Gregoire onstage for a fundraising event in July. Somehow this fundraising event is free—seems like flawed logic to us—and open to the public. It will take place on July 17th at WaMu Theatre at Qwest Field from noon to 3 p.m. more ›

The PI's Big Blog floated the rumor yesterday that Washington's own "mom in tennis shoes," Patty Murray, could become Obama's running mate. We did a double take and wondered if someone had spiked our morning coffee. While Murray has been a successful legislator for Washington State, she was a fierce Hillary supporter until throwing her support behind Obama on Sunday. She doesn't add what Obama needs to the ticket anyway. more ›

Throughout the campaign we have been gathering the top political writers in the country, and asking them to discuss the presidential race. Today they discuss the end of the Democratic primary, Senator Clinton's future, and a brief look at the general. more ›

Over the past year and a half or so of Hillary Clinton's hugely historic run for the presidency, we've been thoroughly impressed with the legacy she's left as the first of her kind. She's undoubtedly owned every single debate—except for that one where Edwards came alive for a minute and sounded like a real person who had more going for him than being the son of a mill worker. She made sure health care mattered to whomever takes over the country. She got the country talking about feminism again, got men and women alike uncomfortable about whether or not it's okay to treat women a certain way. She presented an impressive economic plan, overcame pretty much every controversy surrounding her, and ignored the ones that were ridiculous or irrelevant (i.e. claims that Clinton's a racist, talk about her cleavage). more ›

...if you're heading to the next round of caucuses this Sunday. We can't think of any local angle on this, but it's important to share this kind of information with our readers when we find it. Because, let's face it, stuff like this can sway voters, folks. (NSFW, unless you have headphones): more ›

Over the weekend we got an email from our friend in Wisconsin asking, "Why does Washington have a caucus and a primary? I don't get it. How does this work?" more ›

Unlike Kevin Henry, Congressman Brian Baird, of Washington's third district, has endorsed Barack Obama. He joins Congressman Adam Smith, Governor Gregoire, and Pearl Jam as state leaders on Obama's side. more ›