The Democrats filed suit Tuesday in King County Superior Court to force Dino Rossi to be listed on the ballot as a "Republican" instead of as a member of the "GOP Party" in his race against incumbent Gov. Christine Gregoire, The Seattle Times reported Wednesday. Gregoire beat Rossi by a 133-vote margin in 2004.

The Democrats contend Rossi is trying to distance himself from the damaged Republican Party brand by listing himself as a GOP member, a move that a recent Elway poll suggested could benefit him in the election.

"There's no question we were shocked by the Elway poll," state Democratic Party Chairman Dwight Pelz said. He said an internal poll conducted by the party came to similar conclusions.

"We believe the law is being broken, and we're asking the court to step in and fix it," he said.