Carolyn Long talks with citizens of the greater Lewis County during a town hall meeting at the Veterans Memorial Museum last September.
President Barack Obama endorsed Carolyn Long Monday in her race against Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler, R-Battle Ground, the strongest sign yet that Democrats on the national level are buying into the challenger’s prospects of defeating the GOP incumbent.
“Today, I’m proud to endorse even more Democratic candidates who aren’t just running against something, but for something—to expand opportunity for all of us and to restore dignity, honor, and compassion to public service,” he wrote.
The Washington State University, Vancouver professor was among a slew of 260 Democratic candidates Obama endorsed in a tweet.
Obama took a four-point majority in the 3rd District during the 2008 election, but lost the district by two points during his 2012 reelection. In 2016, the district swung further right, giving President Trump a seven-point edge over Hillary Clinton.
In a statement touting the endorsement, Long was quick to mention the GOP — a likely nod to the Republican voters she’ll need to win over — even as she picked up her strongest support yet from the Democratic establishment.
"I’m deeply grateful for President Obama’s support for our campaign," Long wrote. “I’ve long been an admirer of his collaborative approach to politics and how he consistently worked to reverse the disturbing trend of growing polarization in our national political debate. His tireless efforts to include Congressional Republicans in the drafting of the ACA, including the Blair House summit with Speaker Boehner, typifies the kind of leadership we need going forward and I will be proud to defend his legacy of expanding access to healthcare for more than 20 million Americans once I get to Congress."
Long has consistently presented herself as a bipartisan pragmatist, willing to work across the aisle — even as Democratic anger at Trump has fueled the party’s efforts heading into the midterm elections.
The Obama endorsement is the strongest sign yet that national Democrats see Long’s campaign as competitive, the first serious challenge to Herrera Beutler since her initial campaign in 2010. Long finished seven points behind the incumbent in the August primary, but Democratic candidates overall claimed 49 percent of the vote.
The Monday announcement followed Gov. Jay Inslee’s backing of the Long campaign on Sunday.
“Carolyn’s decades of service to her community as an educator and experience fostering civil, productive debate on big issues we face as a nation make her uniquely qualified to represent the people for Southwest Washington,” Inslee said. “I know Carolyn will work with both parties to get the federal resources Southwest Washington needs to rebuild its aging infrastructure and to bring more high-wage jobs to the district.”
Also on Monday, Long earned the endorsement of the Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ advocacy organization. She has previously announced the backing of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, Emily’s List, the Daily Kos, Planned Parenthood Action Fund, Sierra Club, End Citizens United, the American Federation of Teachers, National Education Association and League of Conservation Voters — a who’s-who of powerhouse Democratic fundraising and advocacy groups.
How much that national support will matter in the heavily GOP 3rd District remains to be seen. As of the last reporting period, Herrera Beutler had more than $1 million in campaign funds in the bank, while Long barely exceeded $100,000. Those numbers are from July, however, before much of Long’s national backing materialized. The next Federal Election Commission filing deadline is Oct. 15.
