Janice Niemi (September 18, 1928 – October 21, 2020) was an American lawyer and politician who served in the

Washington House of Representatives The Washington House of Representatives is the lower house of the Washington State Legislature, and along with the Washington State Senate makes up the legislature of the U.S. state of Washington. It is composed of 98 Representatives from 49 ...

from the 43rd district from 1983 to 1987 and in 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 ...

from the 43rd district from 1987 to 1995.

Early life and education

Janice Bell Bailey was born in

Rochester, Minnesota Rochester is a city in Olmsted County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. It is located along rolling bluffs on the Zumbro River's south fork in Southeast Minnesota. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a popul ...

and raised in

Spokane, Washington Spokane ( ) is the most populous city in eastern Washington and the county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It lies along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south o ...

, the daughter of Richard J. Bailey and Norma Anna Bell Bailey. Her father was a doctor. She completed a bachelor's degree in 1950 from the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...

, earned a master's degree from the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

, and one of the first women to graduate from UW's law school. She pursued further studies in Europe in the 1950s.

Career

Bailey worked for the United States State Department in Europe until she married in 1953. She became a district court judge in 1971. She was endorsed by SEAMEC (Seattle Municipal Elections Committee for Gays) in her unsuccessful 1978 run for Congress. She served in the Washington House of Representatives from the 43rd district from 1983 to 1987 and in the Washington State Senate from the 43rd district, from 1987 to 1995. She was one of the founders of the Washington Women Lawyers Association. From 1994 to until her retirement in 2000, she was a judge on the King County Superior Court.

Personal life

Niemi married fellow lawyer Preston Leon Niemi in 1953, and had two children. The Niemis lived in Mexico in the 1960s while he was legal vice consul for the United States in Mexico. They divorced in 1987; Preston Niemi died in 1999. Janice Niemi died on October 21, 2020, in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

, at age 92.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Niemi, Janice 1928 births 2020 deaths Democratic Party members of the Washington House of Representatives Democratic Party Washington (state) state senators University of Washington alumni University of Michigan alumni Women state legislators in Washington (state) Candidates in the 1978 United States elections 20th-century members of the Washington State Legislature 20th-century American women politicians