U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell faces a challenge this year from a Yakima doctor who thinks the government should take a harsher approach toward homelessness and the fentanyl crisis .
Why it matters: Cantwell, a Democrat who is the 12th most senior U.S. senator, is seeking a fifth term, while Republican Raul Garcia hopes to end her 24-year Senate career.
Zoom in: Garcia hasn’t held elected office before, although he ran for governor in 2020 and lost in the primary.
- He says one of his strengths is that he’s not a career politician — a clear jab at Cantwell, who served in the U.S. House and the Washington state Legislature before joining the Senate in 2001.
- Cantwell also worked as an executive at the Seattle tech company RealNetworks in the 1990s.
State of play: A SurveyUSA poll this month of 703 likely voters found Cantwell leading Garcia by more than 20 percentage points.
Here’s a look at how the candidates compare on a few key issues, based on their answers during debates on Oct. 8 and Oct. 17 .