The Washington State Senate is the

upper house An upper house is one of two Legislative chamber, chambers of a bicameralism, bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the lower house. The house formally designated as the upper house is usually smaller and often has more restricted p ...

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 ...

. 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 Lower may refer to: * ''Lower'' (album), 2025 album by Benjamin Booker *Lower (surname) *Lower Township, New Jersey *Lower Receiver (firearms) *Lower Wick Lower Wick is a small hamlet located in the county of Gloucestershire, England. It is sit ...

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

, state senators serve without

term limits A term limit is a legal restriction on the number of Term of office, terms a Incumbent, person may serve in a particular elected office. When term limits are found in Presidential system, presidential and Semi-presidential republic, semi-president ...

, 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

s of

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

and territorial legislatures and the federal

U.S. Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...

, the state senate can confirm or reject

gubernatorial A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...

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 Steve Conway. The majority leader is Democrat Jamie Pedersen. The minority leader is Republican John Braun.

Composition

Members (2025-2027, 69th Legislature)

: † Originally appointed : ^ Originally elected in special election : # Sworn in early to fill vacant seat

Past composition of the Senate

Notes

References

External links

Washington State SenateMap of Legislative Districts
{{Coord, 47.0358, -122.9045, type:landmark_region:US-WA, display=title Government of Washington (state) State upper houses in the United States