Washington State Senate

"Washington Senate" redirects here. For the Senate in Washington, D.C., see United States Senate.

Washington State Senate
Washington State Legislature
Type
Type	Upper house
Term limits	None
New session started	January 10, 2011
Leadership
President of the Senate	Brad Owen, (D) since January 15, 1997
President pro Tempore	Margarita Prentice, (D) since December 9, 2010
Majority Leader	Lisa J. Brown, (D) since January 3, 2005
Minority Leader	Mike Hewitt, (R) since January 3, 2006
Structure
Members	49
Political groups	Democratic Party (27) Republican Party (22)
Length of term	4 years
Authority	Article II, Washington State Constitution
Salary	$42,106/year + per diem
Elections
Last election	November 2, 2010 (25 seats)
Next election	November 6, 2012 (24 seats)
Redistricting	Washington State Redistricting Commission
Meeting place
State Senate Chamber Washington State Capitol Olympia, Washington
Website
Washington State Senate

The Washington State Senate is the upper house of the Washington State Legislature. The body consists of 49 senators, each representing a district with a population of nearly 120,000. The State Senate meets at the Legislative Building in Olympia.

As with the lower House of Representatives, state senators serve without term limits, though senators serve four-year terms. Senators are elected from the same legislative districts as House members, with each district electing two representatives but only one senator.

Like other upper houses of state and territorial legislatures and the federal U.S. Senate, the state senate can confirm or reject gubernatorial appointments to the state cabinet, commissions and boards.

Leadership of the Senate

The Lieutenant Governor of Washington serves as the President of the Senate, but only casts a vote if required to break a tie. In his or her absence, the President Pro Tempore presides over the Senate. The President Pro Tempore is elected by the majority party caucus followed by confirmation of the entire Senate through a Senate Resolution. The President Pro Tempore is the chief leadership position in the Senate. The other Senate leaders, such as the majority and minority leaders are elected by their respective party caucuses.

The current President of the Senate is Brad Owen. The current President Pro Tempore is Democrat Margarita Prentice (D–Renton). The Majority Leader is Lisa J. Brown (D–Spokane) and the Minority Leader is Mike Hewitt (R–Walla Walla).

Composition of the Senate

Affiliation	Party (Shading indicates majority caucus)		Total
	Democratic	Republican		Vacant
End of previous legislature	31	18	49	0
Begin	27	21	48	1
February 11, 2011		22	49	0
Latest voting share	55.1%	44.9%

Members of the Senate (2011-2012, 62nd Legislature)

District	Senator	Party	Residence	First elected
1	Rosemary McAuliffe	Democratic	Bothell	1992
2	Randi Becker	Republican	Eatonville	2008
3	Lisa J. Brown	Democratic	Spokane	1996
4	MIchael Padden	Republican	Spokane Valley	2011
5	Cheryl Pflug	Republican	Maple Valley	2004
6	Michael Baumgartner	Republican	Spokane	2010
7	Bob Morton	Republican	Kettle Falls	1994
8	Jerome Delvin	Republican	Richland	2004*
9	Mark Schoesler	Republican	Ritzville	2004
10	Mary Margaret Haugen	Democratic	Camano Island	1992
11	Margarita Prentice	Democratic	Renton	1992
12	Linda Evans Parlette	Republican	Wenatchee	2000
13	Janea Holmquist	Republican	Moses Lake	2006
14	Curtis King	Republican	Yakima	2007*
15	Jim Honeyford	Republican	Sunnyside	1998
16	Mike Hewitt	Republican	Walla Walla	2000
17	Don Benton	Republican	Vancouver	1996
18	Joseph Zarelli	Republican	Ridgefield	1995*
19	Brian Hatfield	Democratic	Raymond	2006*
20	Dan Swecker	Republican	Rochester	1995*
21	Paull Shin	Democratic	Edmonds	1998
22	Karen Fraser	Democratic	Olympia	1992
23	Christine Rolfes	Democratic	Bainbridge Island	2011
24	James Hargrove	Democratic	Hoquiam	1992
25	Jim Kastama	Democratic	Puyallup	2000
26	Derek Kilmer	Democratic	Gig Harbor	2006
27	Debbie Regala	Democratic	Tacoma	2000
28	Mike Carrell	Republican	Lakewood	2004*
29	Steve Conway	Democratic	South Tahoma	2011
30	Tracey Eide	Democratic	Federal Way	1998
31	Pam Roach	Republican	Auburn	1990
32	Maralyn Chase	Democratic	Edmonds	2011
33	Karen Keiser	Democratic	Kent	2000
34	Sharon Nelson	Democratic	West Seattle	2011*
35	Tim Sheldon	Democratic	Potlatch	1996
36	Jeanne Kohl-Welles	Democratic	Seattle	1994
37	Adam Kline	Democratic	Seattle	1996
38	Nick Harper	Democratic	Everett	2011
39	Val Stevens	Republican	Arlington	1996
40	Kevin Ranker	Democratic	San Juan Island	2008
41	Steve Litzow	Republican	Mercer Island	2010
42	Doug Ericksen	Republican	Ferndale	2010
43	Ed Murray	Democratic	Seattle	2006
44	Steve Hobbs	Democratic	Lake Stevens	2006
45	Andy Hill	Republican	Redmond	2010
46	David Frockt	Democratic	Seattle	2011
47	Joe Fain	Republican	Auburn	2010
48	Rodney Tom	Democratic	Medina	2006
49	Craig Pridemore	Democratic	Vancouver	2004

See also

• Washington State Capitol
• Washington State Legislature
• Washington House of Representatives

External links

• Washington State Senate
• Map of State Senate Districts