Drew Christian MacEwen (born June 12, 1973) is an American politician of the Republican Party. He is a member of the

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 Washington State Capitol, Legis ...

, representing the 35th district, which covers the entirety of Mason County and parts of Kitsap and

Thurston Thurston may refer to: Places Antarctica * Thurston Glacier, Marie Byrd Land * Thurston Island, off Ellsworth Land United Kingdom * Thurston, Suffolk, England, a village and parish ** Thurston railway station United States * Thurston County, Neb ...

counties.Jessie Darland
MacEwen and Huffman look to face off in Nov. 3 election for 35th District House Seat
''Kitsap Sun'' (August 4, 2020).

Career

MacEwen is a real estate investor and developer,Rich Smith
Here's How Many Landlords Are in the Washington Legislature
''The Stranger'' (March 31, 2020). and a

financial advisor A financial adviser or financial advisor is a professional who provides financial services to clients based on their financial situation. In many countries, financial advisors must complete specific training and be registered with a regulatory ...

.Rachel La Corte
House passes measure to create long-term care program
Associated Press (February 21, 2019). He formerly was in the

Navy A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...

. He is president of Falcon Financial Inc., managing partner of Mountain Lakes Capital Management, and a partner in two restaurants. In 2012, MacEwen was elected to the state House, defeating Lynda Ring Erickson of the Democratic Party by a margin of 51.84% (32,975 votes) to 48.16% (30,638 votes). He took office in 2013. In 2014, he defeated Tammey Newton of the Democratic Party by a margin of 59.21% (27,408) to 40.79% (18,885). In 2016, he defeated Craig Patti of the Independent Democratic Party by a margin of 54.21% (35,384) to 45.79% (29,888). In 2018, he defeated Democratic candidate David Daggett by 33,320 votes (51.22%) to 31,738 votes (48.78%). In 2020, he defeated Democratic candidate Darcy Huffman by 47,618 votes (56.42%) to 36,668 votes (43.44%). In 2015, MacEwen sponsored legislation (House Bill 1838) to allow

bear-baiting Bear-baiting was a historical blood sport in which a chained bear and one or more dogs were forced to fight one another. It also sometimes involved pitting a bear against another animal. Until the 19th century, it was commonly performed in Gr ...

of black bears as a hunting practice under some circumstances. The Humane Society opposed the legislation. In 2015, MacEwen introduced legislation that would create a lower

minimum wage A minimum wage is the lowest remuneration that employers can legally pay their employees—the price floor below which employees may not sell their labor. List of countries by minimum wage, Most countries had introduced minimum wage legislation b ...

for workers under 18 years of age and would allow employers to count benefits, such as healthcare, toward the minimum wage. During the

2016 presidential election This national electoral calendar for 2016 lists the national/ federal elections held in 2016 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *7 January: Kiri ...

between

Hillary Rodham Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...

and

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

, MacEwen declined to say who he would vote for. In 2018, MacEwen and two other Republican state legislators (

Doug Ericksen Douglas John Ericksen (January 28, 1969 – December 17, 2021) was an American politician and lobbyist who served as a member of the Washington State Senate, representing the 42nd district from 2011 to 2021. Ericksen was the ranking member of t ...

and

Brandon Vick Brandon Parker Vick (born 1984) is an American politician of the Republican Party. He was a member of the Washington House of Representatives, representing the 18th district, first elected to that position in 2012. He first ran for office again ...

) traveled to

Cambodia Cambodia, officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. It is bordered by Thailand to the northwest, Laos to the north, and Vietnam to the east, and has a coastline ...

to observe the undemocratic elections in the country, which were not free and fair. The election was held under

Hun Sen Samdech Hun Sen (; , Romanization of Khmer#UNGEGN, UNGEGN: ; born 5 August 1952) is a Cambodian politician and former military officer who currently serves as the List of presidents of the Senate (Cambodia), president of the Senate. He previous ...

authoritarian Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political ''status quo'', and reductions in democracy, separation of powers, civil liberties, and ...

regime, which has repressed the opposition as well as independent media. The visit raised concerns about whether the three lawmakers were being used to give a veneer of credibility to the sham elections, which were not observed by internationally recognized election monitors.Joseph O'Sullivan
Questions raised over Washington state lawmakers' visit to Cambodia to observe elections
''Seattle Times'' (August 4, 2018). Governor

Jay Inslee Jay Robert Inslee ( ; born February 9, 1951) is an American politician and lawyer who served from 2013 to 2025 as the 23rd governor of Washington. A member of the Democratic Party, he served from 1993 to 1995 and again from 1999 to 2012 as a ...

wrote a letter to the legislators to express concern about the visit. After MacEwen and Vick met with the U.S. ambassador to Cambodia, both cut the trip short and returned to Washington. After the

Cypress Island Atlantic salmon pen break On August 19, 2017, a net pen at a salmon farm near Cypress Island, Washington, broke, accidentally releasing hundreds of thousands of non-native Atlantic salmon into the Pacific Ocean. The fish farm was run by Cooke Aquaculture Pacific, LLC. Ac ...

, MacEwen co-sponsored legislation to ban the net-pen farming of Atlantic salmon in Washington, due to the risk that the escapes of the non-native species from salmon farms would cause environmental harm. The legislation had bipartisan support, and Governor Inslee, a Democrat, signed the legislation in 2018. During the 2020 session, MacEwen was the Republicans' deputy floor leader. In May 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic in Washington, MacEwen was one of four Republican state legislators who sued Inslee in federal court, contending that "the emergency has been contained" and that Inslee lacked the power to issue restrictions to slow the spread of the virus. The court rejected the challenge. MacEwen reportedly considered a bid for

Governor of Washington The governor of Washington is the head of government of Washington and commander-in-chief of the state's military forces.WA Const. art. III, § 2. The officeholder has a duty to enforce state laws,WA Const. art. III, § 5. the power to either ...

in 2020. In the

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

he defeated Democrat Julianne Gale to replace retiring

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

Tim Sheldon Timothy Markham Sheldon (born March 9, 1947) is an American farmer, businessman, and politician who served as a member of the Washington State Senate, representing the 35th District from 1997 to 2023. The district includes all of Mason County an ...

. In December 2023, MacEwen announced that he was running for U.S. house He was defeated by Democratic state Senator

Emily Randall Emily Elissa Randall (born October 30, 1985) is an American politician and activist who is a U.S. representative for Washington's 6th congressional district and a former member of the Washington State Senate.Washington's 6th congressional district Washington's 6th congressional district encompasses the Olympic Peninsula, the Kitsap Peninsula, and most of the city of Tacoma. Its counties include the entirety of Clallam, Kitsap, Mason, Jefferson, and Grays Harbor counties, and part of ...

since

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:MacEwen, Drew 1973 births Living people People from Owatonna, Minnesota Republican Party members of the Washington House of Representatives 21st-century members of the Washington State Legislature Republican Party Washington (state) state senators University at Albany, SUNY alumni Candidates in the 2024 United States House of Representatives elections