Bob Ferguson Exits Race, as Does Bob Ferguson. Leaving Bob Ferguson

Two Bob Fergusons have dropped from the Washington governor's race, giving voters who want to vote for the remaining Bob Ferguson a less confusing option. The strange chain of events:

• Bob Ferguson, I: The politician everyone knows in the state is the Democratic attorney general, reports King5. He is now running for governor.
• The other two: Conservative activist Glen Morgan engineered a plan to get the other two Bob Fergusons (they are not politicians) on the August primary ballot as Democratic rivals, per the Seattle Times. On Facebook, he announced himself as their "volunteer campaign manager." AG Ferguson tweeted it was an obvious scheme to "confuse voters."

• Withdrawals: The lesser-known Fergusons dropped out of the race Monday—the deadline for withdrawals—after AG Ferguson sent them cease-and-desist letters, reports KOMO. He said they could have faced felony charges under a state statute aimed at barring confuse-the-voter ballot entries.
• Outraged: "I'm just a little man, I do not have the means to combat this," Bob Ferguson of Graham tells the Times. In a longer statement, he slammed the "bullish behavior by someone that is too afraid to stand toe-to-toe with me." Bob Ferguson of Yakima similarly said his "dream" was "destroyed." Neither man acknowledged a multiple-Bob scheme.
• Now what: With the race back to normal, AG Ferguson is expected to advance in the August 6 primary and face either Dave Reichert or Semi Bird, the GOP favorites, in the general election. Current Gov. Jay Inslee, a Democrat, has opted not to seek a fourth term, per NBC News.

(More Washington state stories.)