Washington State Senate

Washington State Senate
Washington State Senate
Washington State Legislature
Type
Type	Upper chamber
Term limits	None
History
New session started	January 9, 2023
Leadership
President	Denny Heck (D) ; since January 13, 2021
President pro tempore	Karen Keiser (D) ; since November 15, 2017
Majority Leader	Andy Billig (D) ; since November 15, 2017
Minority Leader	John Braun (R) ; since November 30, 2020
Structure
Seats	49
Political groups	Majority Caucus Democratic (29); Minority Caucus Republican (20);
Length of term	4 years
Authority	Article II, Washington State Constitution
Salary	$56,881/year + per diem
Elections
Last election	November 8, 2022; (24 seats)
Next election	November 5, 2024; (25 seats)
Redistricting	Washington 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 members, each representing a district with a population of nearly 160,000. 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 one senator and two representatives. Terms are staggered so that half the Senate is up for reelection every two years.

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

The state constitution allows both houses to write their own rules of procedure (article II, section 9) and to elect their own officers (article II, section 10) with the proviso that the lieutenant governor may preside in each house and has a deciding vote in the Senate, but that the Senate may choose a "temporary president" in the absence of the lieutenant governor. The prevailing two-party system has produced current senate rules to the effect that the president pro tempore is nominated by the majority party caucus and elected by the entire Senate.

Lieutenant Governor Denny Heck is constitutionally the president of the Senate. The current president pro tempore is Karen Keiser. The majority leader is Democrat Andy Billig. The minority leader is Republican John Braun.

Composition

Affiliation	Party (Shading indicates majority caucus)			Total

	Democratic		Republican		Vacant
End of previous legislature	28	1	20	49	0

Begin 68th legislature	29	0	20	49	0
October 2, 2024^[2]	28	0	20	48	1
Latest voting share	58.3%	41.7%

Members (2023–2025, 68th Legislature)

District	Senator	Party	Residence^[3]	Counties represented	First elected	Next election
1	Derek Stanford	Democratic	Maltby	King (part), Snohomish (part)	2019†	2024
2	Jim McCune	Republican	Graham	Pierce (part), Thurston (part)	2020	2024
3	Andy Billig	Democratic	Spokane	Spokane (part)	2012	2024
4	Mike Padden	Republican	Spokane Valley	Spokane (part)	2011^	2024
5	Mark Mullet	Democratic	Issaquah	King (part)	2012#	2024
6	Jeff Holy	Republican	Spokane	Spokane (part)	2018	2026
7	Shelly Short	Republican	Addy	Douglas (part), Ferry, Grant (part), Okanogan (part), Pend Oreille, Spokane (part), Stevens	2017†	2026
8	Matt Boehnke	Republican	Kennewick	Benton (part), Franklin (part)	2022	2026
9	Mark Schoesler	Republican	Ritzville	Adams (part), Asotin, Columbia, Franklin (part), Garfield, Lincoln, Spokane (part), Whitman	2004	2024
10	Ron Muzzall	Republican	Oak Harbor	Island, Skagit (part), Snohomish (part)	2019†	2024
11	Bob Hasegawa	Democratic	Seattle	King (part)	2012	2024
12	Brad Hawkins	Republican	East Wenatchee	Chelan, Douglas (part), King (part), Snohomish (part)	2016	2024
13	Judy Warnick	Republican	Moses Lake	Grant (part), Kittitas, Yakima (part)	2014	2026
14	Curtis King	Republican	Yakima	Klickitat, Yakima (part)	2007^	2024
15	Nikki Torres	Republican	Pasco	Adams (part), Benton (part), Franklin (part), Grant (part), Yakima (part)	2022	2026
16	Perry Dozier	Republican	Waitsburg	Benton (part), Walla Walla	2020	2024
17	Lynda Wilson	Republican	Vancouver	Clark (part), Skamania	2016	2024
18	Ann Rivers	Republican	La Center	Clark (part)	2012†	2024
19	Jeff Wilson	Republican	Longview	Cowlitz (part), Grays Harbor (part), Lewis (part), Pacific, Thurston (part), Wahkiakum	2020	2024
20	John Braun	Republican	Centralia	Clark (part), Cowlitz (part), Lewis (part), Thurston (part)	2012	2024
21	Marko Liias	Democratic	Lynnwood	Snohomish (part)	2014†	2026
22	Sam Hunt	Democratic	Olympia	Thurston (part)	2016	2024
23	Drew Hansen	Democratic	Bainbridge Island	Kitsap (part)	2023†	2024
24	Vacant^[2]
25	Chris Gildon	Republican	Puyallup	Pierce (part)	2020	2024
26	Emily Randall	Democratic	Bremerton	Kitsap (part), Pierce (part)	2018	2026
27	Yasmin Trudeau	Democratic	Tacoma	Pierce (part)	2021†	2024
28	T'wina Nobles	Democratic	Fircrest	Pierce (part)	2020	2024
29	Steve Conway	Democratic	Tacoma	Pierce (part)	2010	2026
30	Claire Wilson	Democratic	Auburn	King (part)	2018	2026
31	Phil Fortunato	Republican	Auburn	King (part), Pierce (part)	2017†	2026
32	Jesse Salomon	Democratic	Shoreline	King (part), Snohomish (part)	2018	2026
33	Karen Keiser	Democratic	Des Moines	King (part)	2001†	2026
34	Joe Nguyen	Democratic	White Center	King (part)	2018	2026
35	Drew MacEwen	Republican	Union	Kitsap (part), Mason, Thurston (part)	2022	2026
36	Noel Frame	Democratic	Seattle	King (part)	2022	2026
37	Rebecca Saldaña	Democratic	Seattle	King (part)	2016†	2026
38	June Robinson	Democratic	Everett	Snohomish (part)	2020†	2026
39	Keith Wagoner	Republican	Sedro-Woolley	Skagit (part), Snohomish (part)	2018†	2024
40	Liz Lovelett	Democratic	Anacortes	San Juan, Skagit (part), Whatcom (part)	2019†	2024
41	Lisa Wellman	Democratic	Mercer Island	King (part)	2016	2024
42	Sharon Shewmake	Democratic	Bellingham	Whatcom (part)	2022#	2026
43	Jamie Pedersen	Democratic	Seattle	King (part)	2013†	2026
44	John Lovick	Democratic	Mill Creek	Snohomish (part)	2021†	2026
45	Manka Dhingra	Democratic	Redmond	King (part)	2017^	2026
46	Javier Valdez	Democratic	Seattle	King (part)	2022	2026
47	Claudia Kauffman	Democratic	Kent	King (part)	2022	2026
48	Patty Kuderer	Democratic	Bellevue	King (part)	2017†	2026
49	Annette Cleveland	Democratic	Vancouver	Clark (part)	2012	2024

† Originally appointed

^ Originally elected in special election

# Sworn in early to fill vacant seat

Past composition of the Senate

References

^ "Salary Information | Washington Citizens' Commission on Salaries for Elected Officials". salaries.wa.gov.
^ ^a ^b Democrat Kevin Van De Wege (District 24) resigned [1]
^ "Voter's Pamphlet, Washington State Elections, November 2, 2021" (PDF). Washington Secretary of State. Retrieved December 10, 2021.

External links

47°02′09″N 122°54′16″W / 47.0358°N 122.9045°W / 47.0358; -122.9045

[1] "Salary Information | Washington Citizens' Commission on Salaries for Elected Officials". salaries.wa.gov.

[resigned-2] Democrat Kevin Van De Wege (District 24) resigned [1]

[3] "Voter's Pamphlet, Washington State Elections, November 2, 2021" (PDF). Washington Secretary of State. Retrieved December 10, 2021.

[1]

[2]

[3]

v t e Members of the Washington State Senate
68th State Legislature (2023–2025) President of the Senate Denny Heck (D) President pro tempore Karen Keiser (D) Majority Leader Andy Billig (D) Minority Leader John Braun (R)
▌Derek Stanford (D) ▌Jim McCune (R) ▌Andy Billig (D) ▌Mike Padden (R) ▌Mark Mullet (D) ▌Jeff Holy (R) ▌Shelly Short (R) ▌Matt Boehnke (R) ▌Mark Schoesler (R) ▌Ron Muzzall (R) ▌Bob Hasegawa (D) ▌Brad Hawkins (R) ▌Judy Warnick (R) ▌Curtis King (R) ▌Nikki Torres (R) ▌Perry Dozier (R) ▌Lynda Wilson (R) ▌Ann Rivers (R) ▌Jeff Wilson (R) ▌John Braun (R) ▌Marko Liias (D) ▌Sam Hunt (D) ▌Drew Hansen (D) ▌Vacant ▌Chris Gildon (R) ▌Emily Randall (D) ▌Yasmin Trudeau (D) ▌T'wina Nobles (D) ▌Steve Conway (D) ▌Claire Wilson (D) ▌Phil Fortunato (R) ▌Jesse Salomon (D) ▌Karen Keiser (D) ▌Joe Nguyen (D) ▌Drew MacEwen (R) ▌Noel Frame (D) ▌Rebecca Saldaña (D) ▌June Robinson (D) ▌Keith Wagoner (R) ▌Liz Lovelett (D) ▌Lisa Wellman (D) ▌Sharon Shewmake (D) ▌Jamie Pedersen (D) ▌John Lovick (D) ▌Manka Dhingra (D) ▌Javier Valdez (D) ▌Claudia Kauffman (D) ▌Patty Kuderer (D) ▌Annette Cleveland (D)
Majority caucus ▌Democratic (28) Minority caucus ▌Republican (20) Other ▌Vacant (1) Washington State Legislature Washington House of Representatives Washington State Senate

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