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# 20 Questions with WA Congressional District 5 Candidates
- URL: https://www.rangemedia.co/20-questions-wa-5th-congressional-district-2026-elections/
- Published: 2026-07-22T00:34:38.000Z
- Updated: 2026-07-22T00:34:38.000Z
- Description: Where do the council candidates stand on Medicare, the surveillance state, supporting rural constituents and more? Here’s a bite-sized snapshot before you get your ballots!
- Author: Erin Sellers
- Tags: #specialseries, Election 2026

Washington’s Fifth Congressional District stretches across the eastern edge of the state, spanning more than 15,000 square miles and encompassing 10 of the most rural counties in the state. Twelve candidates, including incumbent Congressman Michael Baumgartner, are currently running to represent the roughly 800,000 who call the district home. 

We asked all twelve candidates to give us brief, clear answers to 20 questions about some of the key issues for voters this year, like: should individual ICE agents be held accountable for their actions? Should the US continue funding the Israeli military? What regulations should be placed on AI usage and data center citing at the federal level? 

All that and more in the handy chart below, and if this isn’t enough to help you make your choice, don’t worry — we’ll be posting stories on the race, linking to candidate forums and sharing coverage by other outlets that you can use to become the most informed voter in Spokane.

Nine of the twelve candidates responded to our questionnaire, and their answers are included verbatim below. Note: for some questions, candidates were asked to choose solely yes, no or other. 

Select a topic below to see their questions and answers.

What is one policy you would introduce or support to address the cost of living for working-class Americans? What do you plan to do to help constituents on SNAP, Medicare or Medicaid? What’s your stance on the Dignity Act, which would provide some workers legal residency, including Washington’s undocumented farmworkers? Should members of Congress be prohibited from trading stocks? Please explain your answer on why Congress should or should not be banned from trading stocks. Do you take corporate PAC dollars? What, if any, reforms would you like to see imposed on political donations? Do you support expanding the Supreme Court? Are there other reforms you would like to see implemented regarding the court? What regulations should be placed on AI usage and data center citing at the federal level? Should Congress take any additional steps to protect the First Amendment rights of protesters or press? What should accountability look like for ICE? What should the federal government’s role be, if any, in regulating trans peoples’ public lives and medical decisions? Name one policy you plan to introduce or implement that would better the lives specifically of rural constituents. Do you believe Eastern WA has gotten shut out of funding opportunities by Trump policies? If Eastern WA has been shut out of funding, how would you fight for the region? Do you have concerns about surveillance tech? If so, how would you address them? Is there a genocide happening in Gaza? Do you support continuing to fund the Israeli military? Why are you the best person to take on the current challenges facing this district?