The 1996 Pierce County Executive election took place on November 5, 1996. Incumbent Republican County Executive Doug Sutherland ran for re-election to a second term. He was challenged by County Councilman Wendell Brown, a Democrat and his opponent from 1992.
On election night, Brown held a narrow lead over Sutherland, but when absentee votes were tallied later in the week, Sutherland took the lead. Sutherland ultimately defeated Brown by a narrow, 2,216-vote margin, winning 47 percent of the vote to Brown's 46 percent, with perennial candidate Dale Washam, an independent, receiving 8 percent of the vote.