Washington's 5th congressional district

"WA-5" redirects here. WA-5 may also refer to Washington State Route 5.

Washington's 5th congressional district
Current Representative		Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R–Spokane)
Population (2000)	654,904
Median income	$35,720
Ethnicity	89.7% White, 1.3% Black, 1.7% Asian, 4.5% Hispanic, 2.4% Native American, 0.4% other
Cook PVI	R+7

Washington's 5th congressional district encompasses the Eastern Washington counties of Okanogan, Ferry, Stevens, Pend Oreille, Lincoln, Spokane, Adams, Whitman, Walla Walla, Columbia, Garfield, and Asotin. It is centered around Spokane, the state's second largest city.

Since 2005, the 5th District has been represented in the U.S. House of Representatives by Cathy McMorris Rodgers, a Republican. Rodgers's predecessor, George Nethercutt, defeated Tom Foley, then Speaker of the House, in the 1994 elections; Foley had held the seat since 1965.

In presidential elections, the 5th District was once fairly competitive, but in recent years has generally been a safe bet for the Republicans. Although George W. Bush carried the district with 57% in 2000 and 2004, John McCain just narrowly won the district with 52% of the vote, while Barack Obama received 46% in 2008.

List of representatives

Representative	Party	Term	District Home	Notes
District created		March 4, 1915
Clarence C. Dill	Democratic	March 4, 1915 – March 3, 1919
John Stanley Webster	Republican	March 4, 1919 – May 8, 1923		Resigned after being appointed judge of the US District Court for the Eastern District of Washington
Vacant		May 8, 1923 – September 25, 1923
Samuel Billingsley Hill	Democratic	September 25, 1923 – June 25, 1936		Resigned after becoming member of the US Board of Tax Appeals
Vacant		June 25, 1936 – January 3, 1937
Charles Henry Leavy	Democratic	January 3, 1937 – August 1, 1942		Resigned after being appointed judge of the US District Court for the Western District of Washington
Vacant		August 1, 1942 – January 3, 1943
Walter Franklin Horan	Republican	January 3, 1943 – January 3, 1965
Tom Foley	Democratic	January 3, 1965 – January 3, 1995		Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1989 to 1995
George R. Nethercutt Jr.	Republican	January 3, 1995 – January 3, 2005
Cathy McMorris Rodgers	Republican	January 3, 2005 – present	Spokane	Incumbent

See also

• United States House of Representatives elections in Washington, 2008
• United States House of Representatives elections in Washington, 2010
• United States House of Representatives elections in Washington, 2012

References

• Martis, Kenneth C. (1989). The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company. 
• Martis, Kenneth C. (1982). The Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company. 
• Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present

External links

• Washington State Redistricting Commission
• Find your new congressional district: a searchable map, Seattle Times, January 13, 2012

United States House of Representatives
Preceded by Texas-12	Home district of the Speaker of the House June 6, 1989 – January 3, 1995	Succeeded by Georgia-6