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Election signs on the side of a highway entering the city of Battle Ground, WA.

Politics

A bitter battle is brewing in one of Washington state’s last swing districts

Sarah Mizes-Tan

Democrats want to scoop up more legislative seats in Battle Ground and other chunks of Southwestern Washington as they edge toward a supermajority in Olympia.

Election workers process mail-in ballots in Industry, Calif., in June.

Law

The Supreme Court rejects Trump's mail voting restrictions for this year's midterms

Hansi Lo Wang

The Supreme Court has rejected the Trump administration's request to allow mail-in voting restrictions under a U.S. Postal Service plan for the midterm general election.

Kelabe Tewolde and Rep. Sharon Tomiko Santos.

Politics

WA’s longest-serving state House member at risk of ouster

Jake Goldstein-Street

Kelabe Tewolde, a planning commissioner and fellow Democrat, defeated Rep. Sharon Tomiko Santos in the primary election to represent south Seattle’s 37th Legislative District.

University of Washington chemist Courtney Marecki builds a fentanyl vaccine from scratch in a video still captured in November 2025. The lab plans to ask the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the go-ahead to move their fentanyl vaccine into human trials, a major step in the vaccine testing and approval process.

Public Health

Northwest researchers develop vaccines to prevent opioid overdose and support addiction recovery

Jes Burns

University of Washington researchers plan to take a vaccine for fentanyl into human trials.

The Fred Meyer grocery store in James Center is scheduled to close in January 2027. Kroger told the union that represents workers there that rising rents led to the closure, but the property manager disputes this.

South Sound

Another Fred Meyer is closing in Tacoma

Lauren Gallup

Kroger, the grocery giant that owns QFC, Fred Meyer and other grocery stores around the country, is planning to close another Fred Meyer in Tacoma. The store sits in the James Center shopping area right across from Tacoma Community College off a busy thoroughfare with a well-used bus line.

Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal on Thursday discussed his request for nearly $2 billion in the next state budget. He is seen here testifying to a House committee in January.

Education

Reykdal seeks $2B infusion for WA public schools in next budget

Jerry Cornfield, Aspen Ford

The state schools chief says Washington is backsliding on its commitment to provide ample funding for basic education for its 1 million students.

A group of people walking in a line through a sunny forest.

Public Health

Seattle hiking group gets younger people with dementia outdoors

Mitch Borden

The Memory Hub’s SOAR program takes people under 65 with dementia on guided hikes around the Puget Sound region to help them enjoy nature and find community.

Arts & Culture

Seattle history comes to life in new series of video shorts

Gary Davis

Over the course of 90 videos, "Seattle: A History in Short Stories" delves into everything from Chief Seattle and George Tsutakawa to public transportation and Namu.

Gov. Bob Ferguson stands at a podium with a crowd behind him.

Public Health

WA officials rush to help thousands keep health plans as Medicaid cuts loom

Mitch Borden

Washington state leaders are trying to help hundreds of thousands of people expected to lose health insurance as federal changes to Medicaid roll out in the coming months.

Government

WA sues to prevent federal changes that would undercut Endangered Species Act

Sarah Mizes-Tan

Washington state is challenging federal changes that would clear the way for more oil drilling and mining in habitats where endangered species live and slash other protections.

Dozens of houses are seen destroyed in a residential neighborhood as crews begin to check the area after a wildfire hit the northern part of Spokane, Wash., Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Environment

Washington has had a record-breaking year for wildfires, and it's not over

Bellamy Pailthorp

Washington Public Lands Commissioner Dave Upthegrove and state forester George Geissler reflected on lessons so far from one of the most intense wildfire years on record.

Arts & Culture

From Emerald Street Boys to Sir Mix-A-Lot, walk Seattle's hip-hop history

Freddy Monares

Seattle hip-hop artists paid homage to the city in their work. A new walking map explores some of the places central to the city's first decade of hip-hop.

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