Less than a quarter of the way into her second term, U.S. Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, D-Skamania, already has a challenger for her congressional seat, one from within her own party.
Brent Hennrich, a Democrat who lives in Vancouver, announced his intention to run against Gluesenkamp Perez in the 2026 primary on Thursday, May 15.
He first ran for the office in 2022 when former Congresswoman Jaime Herrera Beutler, a Republican, was still in office. After filing during candidate filing week in 2022, he stepped aside so Democrats could unite behind Gluesenkamp Perez.
Gluesenkamp Perez advanced through the primary and defeated Republican Joe Kent in the 2022 general election. She beat Kent a second time in 2024.
With Washington’s top two primary, where the two candidates who get the most votes in the primary move on regardless of party, Hennrich’s move was seen as a way to consolidate Democratic support behind one candidate.
At the time, Hennrich spoke with The Columbian expressing a need for unity as Democrats attempted to flip the seat in a district that had remained firmly Republican for more than 10 years, repeatedly electing Herrera Beutler and supporting Donald Trump in U.S. presidential elections.
“This is about democracy. Infighting won’t protect it,” he told The Columbian in an article published ahead of the 2022 primary election. “(Gluesenkamp Perez) is the only viable candidate in this race, and I urge people to coalesce behind her.”
However, Hennrich’s most recent announcement cites frustrations from constituents over Gluesenkamp Perez’s votes in support of bills backed by the Trump administration, including the SAVE Act and the Laken Riley Act.
The SAVE Act is a GOP-backed bill requiring individuals to provide documentation proving U.S. citizenship when registering to vote. The Lake Riley Act requires the federal government to detain any illegal immigrant charged with theft-related crimes, assaulting a police officer or a crime that results in death or serious bodily injury.
"I am running for Congress because our district deserves a leader who will steadfastly uphold democratic ideals and work tirelessly for our entire community's best interests,” Hennrich said in the Thursday announcement. “The SAVE Act is just one example where current representation has strayed from these values, risking women’s rights and basic civil liberties."
In 2022, Gluesenkamp Perez’s victory was a major victory for Democrats in a period of razor thin margins within the U.S. Congress. She attracted national attention after her first victory in the 2022 election when she defeated her Republican opponent, Trump-endorsed Kent, by just 3,000 votes. She extended her lead over Kent when they faced off for the second time in 2024, defeating him by approximately 16,000 votes.
But many Democrats in the district are now showing signs of frustration with the congresswoman.
The news of a new candidate comes less than a month after Gluesenkamp Perez hosted two town halls in her district, one in Centralia and another in Vancouver, where she faced harsh criticism. During the events, the congresswoman faced heckling and shouts from the crowd. Audience members grilled the representative over her recent vote in support of the SAVE Act and demanded she do more to fight Trump administration policies.
Some of the congresswoman's constituents staged protests outside the town halls. In Vancouver, a group of protesters surrounded her car as she tried to leave the event. One audience member was removed from the Centralia town hall for interrupting the event and was eventually arrested by local law enforcement.
Many may now wonder if a more traditional Democrat can win the seat in a rather conservative district. The chair for the Lewis County Democratic Party said that it really depends on the Republican candidates.
“It very much depends on who the Republican candidate is,” Lewis County Democratic Party chair Zachary Eckstein said. “If we have someone like Joe Kent who is very much on the right … it becomes a little easier to win here. If one of our local state House Republicans decided to run … I think a Democrat would have a harder time.”
While the moderate congresswoman is seen by some in her party as the perfect candidate to win in the general election against a Republican opponent, growing dissatisfaction means she could have more difficulty making it past the primary when facing a challenger within her own party.
More Democrats in the race could mean Gluesenkamp Perez's support is split between other candidates.
Hennrich is the only Democratic challenger to appear so far, but with more than a year until the next primary for Washington’s Third Congressional District, there is plenty of time for more candidates to appear.
