The Washington House of Representatives is the lower house of the Washington State Legislature, and along with 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 Legislative Building in Olympi ...

makes up the

legislature A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its p ...

of the U.S. state of

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

. It is composed of 98 Representatives from 49 districts, each of which elects one Senator and two members of the House. They are elected to separate positions with the

top-two primary A nonpartisan blanket primary is a primary election in which all candidates for the same elected office run against each other at once, regardless of the political party. Partisan elections are, on the other hand, segregated by political party ...

system. All members of the House are elected to a two-year term without

term limit A term limit is a legal restriction that limits the number of terms an officeholder may serve in a particular elected office. When term limits are found in presidential and semi-presidential systems they act as a method of curbing the potenti ...

s. The House meets at the State Capitol in Olympia.

Leadership of the House of Representantatives

The

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 Hungerf ...

presides over the House of Representatives. The Speaker and the Speaker

Pro Tem ''Pro tempore'' (), abbreviated ''pro tem'' or ''p.t.'', is a Latin phrase which best translates to "for the time being" in English. This phrase is often used to describe a person who acts as a ''locum tenens'' (placeholder) in the absence of ...

are nominated by the majority party caucus followed by a vote of the full House. As well as presiding over the body, the Speaker is also the chief leadership position and controls the flow of legislation. In the absence of the Speaker the Speaker Pro Tem assumes the role of Speaker. Other House leaders, such as the majority and minority leaders, are elected by their respective party caucuses relative to their party's strength in the House. The Speaker of the House during the first session of the 65th legislature (2019) was

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 (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

Frank Chopp Frank Vana Chopp (born May 13, 1953) is an American politician serving as a Democratic member of the Washington House of Representatives, representing the 43rd district since 1995. His district covers the neighborhoods of Montlake, Fremont, Wall ...

( D-

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

) of the 43rd Legislative District. He stepped down at the end of the session and

John Lovick John Lovick is an American magician, writer, and director. Since the 1990s he has performed as a magician throughout the United States and Canada, as well as England, Australia, New Zealand, and Malaysia. His performing alter ego, Handsome ...

( D- Mill Creek) of the 44th Legislative District served as speaker pro tempore until the second session, when

Laurie Jinkins Laurie A. Jinkins (born August 1964) is an American politician, attorney, and public health official from Tacoma, Washington who serves as a member of the Washington House of Representatives from the 27th district. A Democrat, she has served as S ...

(D-Tacoma) was elected speaker. The Majority Leader is Pat Sullivan ( D- Covington) of the 47th Legislative District. The

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

Minority Leader is J.T. Wilcox ( R-

Roy Roy is a masculine given name and a family surname with varied origin. In Anglo-Norman England, the name derived from the Norman ''roy'', meaning "king", while its Old French cognate, ''rey'' or ''roy'' (modern ''roi''), likewise gave rise to ...

) of the 2nd Legislative District.

Composition

Members (2021-2023, 67th Legislature)

: *Originally appointed : #Sworn in early to fill vacant seat : †Had previous tenure in Washington House of Representatives : ^Redistricted during current tenure : ‡Originally elected in special election : §Member of no caucus

Notable former members

The first women elected were

Frances Cleveland Axtell Frances Sevilla Cleveland Axtell (June 12, 1866 – May 27, 1953) was one of the first female legislators in the United States of America, elected to the Washington House of Representatives in 1912. Early life Cleveland was born to William and ...

and Nena Jolidon Croake in 1912.

Past composition of the House of Representatives

References

External links

Washington House of RepresentativesMap of Legislative Districts
{{Coord, 47.0358, -122.9054, type:landmark_region:US-WA, display=title Washington State Legislature State lower houses in the United States