Michael Baumgartner
A candidate for State Senator, Legislative District 6 (NW Spokane County and NE Spokane) in the 2010 Washington General Election
Party: Republican
Age: 48
City: Spokane, WA
Education: Graduated from Pullman High School in 1995, after attending Gonzaga Prep for two years. Graduated from Washington State University in 1999 with a bachelor’s degree in economics. Graduated from Harvard University in 2002 with a master’s degree in public administration.
Work experience: Worked for office of the Crown Prince of Dubai as economic development adviser for about a year starting in June 2002. Worked two years starting in the spring of 2003 for i4, a company that hoped to build a telecommunication network in Saudi Arabia. Worked as Dubai-based business consultant for about a year. Worked as consultant for Hecla Mining related to gold mine in Venezuela for several months in 2006. Worked as economics officer for the U.S. State Department in Iraq for about a year starting in spring 2007. Worked for Civilian Police International, a State Department contractor, in Afghanistan on a counter-narcotics program for about eight months starting in December 2008. Provided pre-deployment advisory to U.S. military on counterinsurgency. Lecturer on counterinsurgency at Sciences Po University in Paris.
Political experience: Elected to state Senate in 2010, unseating Democratic incumbent Chris Marr. Unsuccessfully challenged Democratic U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell in 2012. Previously served as vice chairman of Senate Ways and Means Committee and chairman of Commerce and Labor committee.
Family: Married. Has four children.
Contact information
Race Results
| Candidate | Votes | Pct |
|---|---|---|
| Michael Baumgartner (R) | 31,765 | 53.81% |
| Chris Marr (D) | 27,263 | 46.19% |
Related Coverage
Incumbents persevere, but challenges await
Thousands of votes are still to be counted from Tuesday’s primary, but along with most races, some lessons are clear. Lesson 1: It may be uncomfortable to be an incumbent this year, but it’s not fatal. Few incumbents were eliminated in the state’s top-two primary, but some clearly have their work ahead of them.
Anti-Marr mailer draws fire
In Tuesday’s primary elections, voters can pick a candidate for the state senate in Eastern Washington’s most competitive legislative district, but both choices are assured of winning a spot in November’s final showdown. Even so, the race between Sen. Chris Marr and his GOP rival, Michael Baumgartner, in the 6th Legislative District has turned into one of the nastiest primaries in the region, with accusations of ignorance, mismanagement and carpetbagging dominating the debate.