WA: Independent Tea Party Candidate Challenges Democrat-Republican Duopoly in CD-3

From the Olympian:

National Republicans and Democrats are closely watching southwest Washington’s 3rd Congressional District this year, thinking U.S. Rep. Brian Baird’s decision to retire at the end of the year instantly turned a Democratic-leaning seat into one that either party might capture . . . 

The independent candidate in the race, political newcomer Norma Jean Stevens of Ocean Beach, is pushing “tea party” themes about taking back the government “for the people” and against what she perceives as runaway spending. Stevens said on her website that she is a 47-year-old Saint Helens, Ore., native who runs a small business, Prestige Funding, that provides “accounts receivable financing to other businesses to help with their cash flow problems.’’