CQ Voting Studies are an annual analysis of a member's support or opposition to a given position. Interest Group Ratings are based on rankings from groups chosen to represent liberal, conservative, business and labor viewpoints.Voting Participation scores are based on the number of times a member voted "yea" or "nay" on roll call votes (not including quorum calls in the House). CQ Vote Studies Year Presidential Support Party Unity   S* O* S O 1998 22% 76% 97% 3% 1997 28 69 96 2 1996 33 66 96 3 1995 16 83 99 0 S=Support; O=Oppose
Voting Participation Year % 1998 99 1997 98 1996 98 1995 99	Interest Groups Year ADA AFL-CIO CCUS ACU 1998 0% n/a 94% 100 % 1997 0 0 100 92 1996 0 0 100 100 1995 0 0 100 92
Note on Interest Groups: ADA=Americans for Democratic Action; AFL-CIO=American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations; CCUS=Chamber of Commerce of the United States; ACU=American Conservative Union

WASHINGTON 4 : Central - Yakima and Tri-Cities

East of the Cascade Mountains, orchards in the 4th supply the nation with nearly 50 percent of its apples. Columbia Crest uses grapes grown in the Yakima Valley for its wines. The district's residents care for and want to protect the environment but bristle at federal regulations that hamper the region's businesses.

Hanford Nuclear Reservation, a 560-mile tract next to the Columbia River, had been a major supplier of jobs throughout the Cold War. Since 1988, when the plutonium plant was shut down, employment has declined precipitously. But a 30-year project to clean up 55 million gallons of hazardous waste began in the early 1990s and is expected to supply the area with engineering, scientific research and blue-collar jobs. A growing agricultural sector spurred by new irrigation techniques has helped the economy, and the population of each county in the district grew steadily between 1990 and 1996.

The 4th is a battleground between Democrats and Republicans, except in recent presidential elections in which Republicans have carried the district - the only region in the state where that happened. While the north has been favorable to Democrats, the most populous area - the southeast Tri-City area of Richland, Kennewick and Pasco - is staunchly Republican.

Major Industry
Scientific research, timber, apple orchards

Population
540,701 (1990)

Cities
Yakima, 65,110; Kennewick, 51,184; Richland, 37,445 (1996)

People
39% rural, 38% urban; 13% age 65+ (ranks fifth of nine in state; middle third nationally); 59% married couples, 29% married couples with children; 16% college educated (ranks ninth of nine in state; middle third nationally); 49% white collar (ranks ninth of nine in state; bottom third nationally), 26% blue collar (ranks fifth of nine in state; middle third nationally) (1990)

Race
83% white, 1% black, 1% Asian; 16% Hispanic origin (1990)

Median Household Income
$25,055 (ranks ninth of nine in state; bottom third nationally) (1990)

Unusual Features
The oldest skeleton ever found in North America was discovered along the banks of the Columbia River in Richland in August 1996 - dubbed the "Kennewick Man," he is believed to be more than 9,300 years old.

© 2002 The Washington Post Company