Dave Ross - 2004 US House Election

2004 US House Election

In May 2004, Ross announced his candidacy for the United States House of Representatives for Washington's 8th congressional district as a Democrat. He began a leave of absence from KIRO at noon on July 23, 2004, to coincide with the beginning of his active candidacy. The seat was held by Republican Jennifer Dunn, who retired in 2004.

In the primary election held on September 14, 2004, Ross decisively defeated fellow Democrats Alex Alben and Heidi Behrens-Benedict. In the general election against King County Sheriff Dave Reichert in the general election on November 2, 2004, anti-Ross advertisements paid for by the National Republican Congressional Committee said that Ross "empowered terrorists" and that he would "wave a white flag" against them. The commercials said that Ross supported cuts to defense spending by $100 billion, but in fact Ross' statement was that he opposed the $100 billion missile-defense system sought by the Bush administration.

CQPolitics described the race this way: "Reichert's record as sheriff – which included capture of the notorious "Green River" serial killer – enabled him to defeat Democrat Dave Ross, a well-known Seattle-based radio talk show host, in 2004 with 51.5 percent and a 5 percentage-point margin." Ross returned to his talk show the following day.