PolitiFinder

1978 Washington U.S. House District 5 Election

Washington · 3 candidates · See every 1978 U.S. House race

Who won the 1978 Washington U.S. House District 5 Election?

Thomas S. Foley won the 1978 Washington U.S. House District 5 Election. Thomas S. Foley received 77,201 popular votes (48%). The main challenger was Duane Alton (42.75%).

See the full head-to-head between Foley and Alton

Foley +5.3 pts · won by 8,440 votes
Thomas S. FoleyDemocraticWINNER48%
77,201 votes
Duane AltonRepublican42.75%
68,761 votes
Mel TonasketIndependent9.26%
14,887 votes
Popular-vote totals for U.S. House elections come from the MIT Election Data and Science Lab (1976–2024).

Data last verified July 28, 2026.