Five 'purple' counties to watch for presidential returns in Western Washington

Election night can be frustrating for West Coast residents: by the time our results start rolling in at 8 p.m., national races are often already called from the East Coast. 

But whether or not we know who our next president is by tonight, there are five counties in and around the Olympic Peninsula to watch for as results start trickling in. 

Clallam, Mason, Grays Harbor, Pacific and Cowlitz counties all voted for Barack Obama in 2012, but they all supported Donald Trump in 2016. What do they think of the job President Trump has done since they voted to hire him? Only ballots will tell. 

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It will be especially fascinating to watch Clallam County, where voters there have chosen the presidential winner every year since 1980. 

As of Monday, 73 percent of the state's roughly 4.8 million registered voters had already submitted their ballots. 

In 2016, about 52% of ballots had been returned by the night before the election.

In addition to voting for president and weighing in on 10 congressional races, voters will also decide on several statewide races including governor and lieutenant governor, scores of legislative races and a ballot measure on sex education.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

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