Laurie A. Jinkins (born August 1964) is an American politician, attorney, and public health official from

Tacoma, Washington Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, southwest of Bellevue, Washington, Bellevue, northeast of the state capital, Olympia ...

who serves as a member of 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 27th district. A

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 ...

, she has served as

Speaker of the House The speaker of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body, is its presiding officer, or the chair. The title was first used in 1377 in England. Usage The title was first recorded in 1377 to describe the role of Thomas de Hung ...

since January 2020.

Early life and education

Jinkins grew up in the rural Midwest and attended the

University of Wisconsin–Madison The University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin, Wisconsin, UW, UW–Madison, or simply Madison) is a public land-grant research university in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. It was founded in 1848 when Wisconsin achieved st ...

, where she earned both bachelor's and master's degrees. She moved to Washington State in 1987 to attend the

University of Puget Sound School of Law Seattle University School of Law (formerly ''University of Puget Sound School of Law'') is the law school affiliated with Seattle University, located in Seattle, Washington, United States. The School is accredited by the American Bar Associatio ...

(now affiliated with

Seattle University Seattle University (Seattle U or SU) is a private Jesuit university in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the largest independent university in the Northwestern United States, with over 7,500 students enrolled in undergraduate and grad ...

), earning a

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

(J.D.) in 1990. In 2007, she completed the Senior Executives in State and Local Government program at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

John F. Kennedy School of Government The John F. Kennedy School of Government, commonly referred to as Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), is the school of public policy of Harvard University, a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Harvard Kennedy School offers master's de ...

Career

After graduation, she worked as an assistant attorney general in Tacoma, before joining the

Washington State Department of Health The Washington State Department of Health is a state agency of Washington. It is headquartered in Olympia, Washington. The agency was created by the state legislature in May 1989 after splitting from the Washington State Department of Social and ...

in Olympia in 1995. She remained at the department until 2008, rising to the post of assistant secretary. In 2008, she joined the

Tacoma–Pierce County Health Department The Tacoma–Pierce County Health Department (TPCHD) is a public health department serving Tacoma and Pierce County in the U.S. state of Washington. It was formed by the city government of Tacoma and Pierce County through an interlocal agreeme ...

as deputy director.

Politics

Jinkins has a long record of involvement in civic, government and political organizations. From 1990 to 1992, she chaired the Tacoma Hate Crimes Task Force, later chairing the Tacoma Charter Review Committee and the

Tacoma Community College Tacoma Community College (TCC) is a public community college in Tacoma, Washington Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle ...

Board of Trustees. In 2009, she led the successful statewide campaign to approve Referendum 71, affirming Washington's domestic partnership law. When Rep. Dennis Flannigan (D–Tacoma) decided against seeking re-election to the Washington House in 2010, Jinkins announced her candidacy for the seat. Four Democrats and one independent filed for the open seat with a

top two primary A nonpartisan primary, top-two primary, or jungle primary is a primary election in which all candidates for the same elected office run against each other at once, regardless of political party. This distinguishes them from partisan primaries, w ...

held on August 17, 2010. Jinkins was the top vote getter in the primary with fellow Democrat Jake Fey, a member of

Tacoma City Council The Tacoma City Council is the major governing body in the city of Tacoma, Washington. The city council has one mayor and eight council members, who are elected to serve four-year terms. The city council has the power to write the laws of the city, ...

, finishing second. In the general election held on November 2, Jinkins defeated Fey 54–46%. On July 31, 2019, the House Democratic Caucus selected Rep. Jinkins as the new State House of Representatives Speaker-designate. She replaced Interim Speaker John Lovick, who took over upon the end of former speaker

Frank Chopp Frank Vana Chopp (May 13, 1953 – March 22, 2025) was an American politician who was the 46th Speaker of the Washington House of Representatives from 1999 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, Chopp represented Washington's 43rd legislat ...

's term. Jinkins is the first female and first LGBTQ speaker in Washington State history.

Personal life

Jinkins is openly gay. She and her wife, Laura Wulf, have one son. She is the first openly lesbian member of the

Washington State Legislature The Washington State Legislature is the state legislature of the State of Washington. It is a bicameral body, composed of the lower Washington House of Representatives, composed of 98 representatives, and the upper Washington State Senate, w ...

References

External links

Official Washington House webpageHouse Democratic Caucus: Rep. Laurie JinkinsCampaign website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jinkins, Laurie 1964 births 21st-century American women politicians American lesbian politicians LGBTQ state legislators in Washington (state) Living people Seattle University School of Law alumni Speakers of the Washington House of Representatives Democratic Party members of the Washington House of Representatives 21st-century members of the Washington State Legislature Politicians from Tacoma, Washington University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni Women state legislators in Washington (state)