Who's running in Washington's 7th congressional district
2 candidates are on the ballot. Below is what each one says they stand for, what they have actually done in office or in public life, and the arguments published for and against them — each quoted from a named source rather than summarised by us.
2 candidates · ballot order · Pramila Jayapal currently holds this seat
Medium confidenceMedium confidenceThe candidate's stated positions and basic record are documented, but coverage is thin — often little independent reporting, or criticism from only one side.What would raise it: More independent reporting, a documented voting record, or published criticism from a named opponent would raise this.
What they say they stand for
Their own words. Claims, not verified facts.
Medicare for All, which she has led in the House.
Immigrant rights, drawn from her organising career.
Restricting United States military aid to Israel.
Congressional oversight of the Justice Department, including on the Epstein files.
Keeping party committees out of contested primaries.
What they’ve actually done
Documented record from official sources.
U.S. Representative for the 7th District since January 2017; re-elected in 2024 with 83.9%.
Chaired the Congressional Progressive Caucus from 2021 to 2025; co-chairs its PAC.
In February 2026 joined Reps. Jamie Raskin and Robert Garcia in demanding the Justice Department stop covertly monitoring members reviewing the Epstein files, after Attorney General Pam Bondi was photographed holding a document listing Jayapal's search history.
Has publicly criticised her own party's campaign committee for intervening in primaries: "we need to let voters do their thing… as the Democratic Party we should stay out of Democratic primaries."
Took 84.4% in the August 4, 2026 top-two primary.
Arguments in favor
She has the Washington State Labor Council, Planned Parenthood Action Fund, Reproductive Freedom for All, End Citizens United, Giffords, Peace Action, CAIR Action, J Street, Track AIPAC and Progressive Democrats of America — plus The Stranger — behind her, an unusually broad left coalition.
— Endorsements from the organisations and publication named
She has pressed her own party's leadership publicly: after the Progressive Caucus PAC raised the DCCC's primary interventions with chair Suzan DelBene and leader Hakeem Jeffries, she said they "apologized profusely" and that "it never should have happened that way." She took better than five in six primary votes.
— Pramila Jayapal, reported by Axios and NOTUS; August 2026 primary results
Arguments against
Gwen Kirkland, a longtime community organiser, ran against her from the left on the argument that electing progressives has not produced change — campaigning on universal health care and against corporate grocery mergers, and describing in the voters' pamphlet the disillusionment of expecting change that did not materialise.
— Gwen Kirkland, 2026 Democratic primary, reported by The Daily of the University of Washington
Sheth argues she has not delivered on Seattle's core problems, campaigning to "bring law and order back to Seattle," build affordable housing to address homelessness, and lower the cost of living.
— Nirav Sheth candidate statement
What we couldn’t verify
Jayapal drew national criticism in 2023 for describing Israel as a racist state, and later clarified those remarks; that episode predates this cycle and no opponent has raised it here, so it is recorded rather than presented as an argument.
No National Republican Congressional Committee material naming Jayapal in this cycle was found; the seat is not competitive.
Kirkland took 3.5% of the primary vote, so the left critique of her did not find much support in the district.
Affordable and sustainable housing as the answer to homelessness.
Restoring law and order in Seattle.
Lowering the cost of living.
Ending birthright citizenship, a position he promotes on social media.
Small business, from his own restaurant.
What they’ve actually done
Documented record from official sources.
Born and raised in Ahmedabad, India; came to the United States as a student in 2008.
Served in the United States Marine Corps as an aircraft mechanic from 2011; later a Lakewood police officer, leaving after injuries sustained in military service.
Restaurant owner; ran for Washington's 10th district in 2024.
Advanced from the August 4, 2026 top-two primary with 9.8%.
Has not held elected office.
Arguments in favor
He consolidated the district's Republican vote to take the second place on the November ballot, and brings service as a Marine Corps aircraft mechanic and a Lakewood police officer to a campaign about public safety in Seattle.
— August 2026 top-two primary results; his military and police service
Arguments against
He took 9.8% to the incumbent's 84.4% in the primary, in a district The Daily of the University of Washington described his candidacy as hopeless in and where Jayapal has won four straight primaries with about 80% of the vote.
— August 2026 primary results; The Daily (University of Washington)
What we couldn’t verify
No published criticism of Sheth by name could be found — not from Pramila Jayapal or her campaign, not from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, and not in Seattle news coverage — and no published case for him beyond his own candidate statement. The Daily of the University of Washington described him as "just as hopeless" as the other challengers, which is a prediction rather than a criticism of him. Because no case against him exists on the record, none is presented for him either, rather than showing his own campaign's case unanswered.
No verified campaign website could be found; a domain in his name resolves to a parked page.
He posts AI-generated comics on Facebook opposing birthright citizenship. No fundraising figures or endorsements for his campaign were found.
Positions and criticism are quoted from the named sources, not our assessments. This is built to help you start getting informed — confirm the official candidate list with your election authority before you vote.
Washington uses a top-two primary. In the August 4, 2026 primary, Democratic incumbent Pramila Jayapal took 84.4% and Republican Nirav Sheth 9.8%; a left-wing Democrat, Gwen Kirkland, took 3.5% and a fourth candidate 2.0%. Jayapal and Sheth appear on the November ballot. The district covers northern and western Seattle and is among the most Democratic in the country — Jayapal won it with 83.9% in 2024.
This is one contest on a longer ballot
A Washington ballot also carries state legislative districts, county offices, judicial seats and often local questions — and which of them you vote on is decided by your street address, not your city or ZIP code.
Your ballot is determined by your election authority, not by us. Verify your registration, precinct, and sample ballot at Washington Secretary of State.