252 sLAde goRton: A hALf centuRy in poLitics
The bottom line, Stu Elway’s polling confirmed, was that the Gorton
campaign convinced just enough voters that Lowry was too liberal. Slade
was the safer choice. “The drug problem” was a major factor for two-
thirds of the respondents. They backed Gorton 46 percent to 38 percent.
Gorton led 46-39 among independents.^53
The American Association of Political Consultants named McGavick a
finalist for campaign manager of the year. He lost to Lee Atwater. Heady
company for a Republican. His next job was Gorton’s chief of staff.^54
Among the new faces to emerge from 1988 was Patty Murray, a pint-
sized school board member from North Seattle. The former preschool
teacher had mobilized opposition to cuts in educational programs after a
legislator dismissed her as just “a mom in tennis shoes.” Murray upset
Bill Kiskaddon, a two-term Republican, to win a seat in the State Senate.
She aimed a lot higher four years later.
11 p.m. Nov. 8, 1988: A glum Mike Lowry watches Slade on TV as the returns
make it clear Gorton is headed back to the U.S. Senate. Alan Berner/The
Seattle Times