While the Mercer Island GOP caucus wrapped up, caucus leader Lori Sotelo grumbled about the turnout. It wasn’t the lack of numbers, according to her; it was the lack of true Republicans. Many of the first time caucus goers on February 9^th were there for long-shot candidates and were unwilling to support the party, she said.

When you walked in the double-door cafeteria to check in, two signs hung behind the desk: one for today’s primary, the other for Dino Rossi.

Sotelo complained to me that many of the voters who showed up to caucus had very little interest in helping out the Rossi campaign. She seemed disgruntled about their presence at her caucus, calling them a “problem” which needed to be sorted out.

A different sort of “problem” rocked the uneventful Washington primary today, as moderate conservatives showed up the die-hards, delivering the state easily into McCain’s hands.

Ten days ago Huckabee was only inches behind McCain in the caucus. Today, with 53 percent of the vote tallied, McCain has more than doubled the former Arkansas governor, 49 percent to 21 percent.

Seattle Time’s David Postman predicted this, writing

…many more voters will cast ballots in Tuesday’s primary than showed up for Republican caucuses Feb. 9. That likely will mean a more moderate group than those who propelled Huckabee to a close second-place finish in the caucuses.

Postman wrote of the lack of enthusiasm from Republicans here in the WA State surrounding McCain. This was evident in my interviews with caucus goers last week, as most said that they’d be voting for the senator even though he wasn’t there first choice. Enthusiasm for Rossi, on the other hand, is high—Sotelo and fellow stanch Republicans here in WA hoping he will beat out Gov. Gregoire (D) in their rematch this November.