Arrow-right Camera
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Last-minute election push is on

Washington gubernatorial candidate, Rob McKenna, is greeted by supporters as he makes a stop in Spokane, Nov. 1, 2012 at the Rivers Edge.  McKenna is visiting 30 cities in eight days. (Dan Pelle / The Spokesman-Review)
With five days left until Election Day, campaigns are shifting their focus from policy arguments to pleas for action. Candidates, meanwhile, are crisscrossing the state to make their final pitches. Republican gubernatorial candidate Rob McKenna made his last stop in Spokane before Tuesday’s election at a rally at a GOP campaign office in front of about 75 supporters. McKenna spent much of his speech thanking his supporters, stressing his bipartisan support and asking volunteers to step up their efforts on behalf of him and other Republican statewide candidates. “We’re close to the finish line, we’ve got to run through the tape,” he said. “You can’t let up for an instant, no matter what the polls say.” What the polls say in McKenna’s race against Democratic former U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee is that it’s a close race. In the past couple of weeks they have varied from a 2-point lead for McKenna to a 3-point lead for Inslee, all within the margin of error. Among the other Republicans in the Spokane crowd were secretary of state candidate Kim Wyman and lieutenant governor candidate Bill Finkbeiner. Democratic U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, who also visited Spokane last week during her bus tour of the state, is scheduled to make another Spokane appearance Sunday afternoon. Cantwell’s Republican opponent, state Sen. Michael Baumgartner, of Spokane, also will be here on Sunday. Though she addressed some issues in the campaign like preserving Social Security, Cantwell last week also was focused on motivating her supporters to work for more votes. “We’re asking for your help because just like in 2006, I want to win Spokane County, and I need everybody’s help to make sure we get that done,” Cantwell said.