I have to dispute your characterization of the 8th District. Although it reliably sends Jennifer Dunn to Congress, Gore carried it convincingly in 2000.
Agreed. But I think the times, they are a'changin'. I believe tough economic times and bad Dem behavior since 2000 have changed the swing vote noticeably.
On the other hand, we moved from downtown Seattle, deep in McDermott territory, to Snoqualmie this year, so I may be over-reacting to the nice, nice change. People here seem to possess more common sense.