Washington State Auditor

Washington State Auditor
General information
Office Type:	Partisan
Office website:	Official Link
Compensation:	$132,212
2024-2025 FY Budget:	$22,542,000
Term limits:	None
Structure
Length of term:	4 years
Authority:	Washington Constitution, Article 3, Section 2
Selection Method:	Elected
Current Officeholder
Pat McCarthy
Elections
Next election:	Washington Auditor election, 2028
Last election:	Washington Auditor election, 2024
Other Washington Executive Offices
Governor • Lieutenant Governor • Secretary of State • Attorney General • Treasurer • Auditor • Superintendent of Education• • Agriculture Commissioner • Insurance Commissioner• Natural Resources Commissioner• Labor Commissioner• Public Service Commissioner

The Washington State Auditor is an elected state executive position in the Washington state government. The auditor audits financial information at all levels of state government.

Current officeholder

The current officeholder is Pat McCarthy (D). McCarthy was elected on November 8, 2016, and assumed office on January 11, 2017.

Authority

Article 3 of the state constitution establishes the state's executive offices.

Article III, Section 2:

Executive Department. The executive department shall consist of a governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, treasurer, auditor, attorney general, superintendent of public instruction, and a commissioner of public lands, who shall be severally chosen by the qualified electors of the state at the same time and place of voting as for the members of the legislature.

Qualifications

Article 3, Section 25 of the state constitution establishes the qualifications of the office:

• a citizen of the United States
• a qualified elector in Washington

Qualifications, Compensation, Offices Which May Be Abolished. No person, except a citizen of the United States and a qualified elector of this state, shall be eligible to hold any state office...

Elections

Washington state government organizational chart

In Washington, the auditor is elected every four years. Elections are held in November and the winner assumes office the following January, serving until a successor is elected and qualified.

2024

See also: Washington Auditor election, 2024

General election candidates

• Pat McCarthy  (Incumbent) (Democratic Party) ✔
• Matt Hawkins  (Republican Party) 

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Primary candidates

• Pat McCarthy  (Incumbent) (Democratic Party) ✔
• Matt Hawkins  (Republican Party) ✔ 

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= candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey

2020

See also: Washington Auditor election, 2020

General election candidates

• Pat McCarthy  (Incumbent) (Democratic Party) ✔
• Christopher Leyba  (Republican Party) 

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Primary candidates

• Pat McCarthy  (Incumbent) (Democratic Party) ✔
• Joshua Casey  (Democratic Party) 
• Christopher Leyba  (Republican Party) ✔ 

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2016

See also: Washington Auditor election, 2016

The general election for auditor was held on November 8, 2016.

Pat McCarthy defeated Mark Miloscia in the Washington auditor election.

Washington Auditor, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Pat McCarthy	52.31%	1,597,011
	Republican	Mark Miloscia	47.69%	1,455,771
Total Votes				3,052,782
Source: Washington Secretary of State

Full history

To view the electoral history dating back to 2000 for the office of Washington Auditor, click [show] to expand the section.

2012 See also: Washington down ballot state executive elections, 2012 Troy Kelley (D) defeated James Watkins (R) for the open seat of Washington State Auditor in the general election on November 6, 2012. 2012 General Election Results for Washington Auditor Washington State Auditor General Election, 2012 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Democratic Troy Kelley 52.9% 1,512,620      Republican James Watkins 47.1% 1,344,137 Total Votes 2,856,757 Election results via Washington Secretary of State 2008 On November 4, 2008, Brian Sonntag won re-election to the office of Washington Auditor. He defeated J. Richard (Dick) McEntee (R) in the general election. Washington Auditor, 2008 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Democratic Brian Sonntag Incumbent 63.5% 1,770,977      Republican J. Richard (Dick) McEntee 36.5% 1,016,396 Total Votes 2,787,373 Election results via Washington Secretary of State. 2004 On November 2, 2004, Brian Sonntag won re-election to the office of Washington Auditor. He defeated Will Baker (R) and Jason G. Bush (L) in the general election. Washington Auditor, 2004 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Democratic Brian Sonntag Incumbent 63.9% 1,668,575      Republican Will Baker 32.2% 841,772      Libertarian Jason G. Bush 3.9% 101,161 Total Votes 2,611,508 Election results via Washington Secretary of State. 2000 On November 7, 2000, Brian Sonntag won re-election to the office of Washington Auditor. He defeated Richard McEntee (R) and Chris Caputo (L) in the general election. Washington Auditor, 2000 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Democratic Brian Sonntag Incumbent 57.6% 1,295,745      Republican Richard McEntee 36.9% 829,458      Libertarian Chris Caputo 5.5% 123,058 Total Votes 2,248,261 Election results via Washington Secretary of State.

Vacancies

Article 3, Section 13 of the state constitution establishes the vacancy procedures for this office. In the event of a vacancy, the governor fills the vacancy by appointment. The term of the appointee expires when a successor has been elected.

When, during a recess of the legislature, a vacancy shall happen in any office, the appointment to which is vested in the legislature, or when at any time a vacancy shall have occurred in any other state office, for the filling of which vacancy no provision is made elsewhere in this Constitution, the governor shall fill such vacancy by appointment, which shall expire when a successor shall have been elected and qualified.

Duties

As of January 2021, the stated work of the auditor's office was:

“

Our audits look at financial information and compliance with state, federal and local laws on the part of all local governments, including schools, and all state agencies, including institutions of higher education. In addition, we: Perform special investigations of fraud and whistleblower cases and referrals from our Citizen Hotline. Conduct performance audits of state agencies and local governments. Produce several annual reports addressing state, local and internal matters. Take our role as partners in accountability seriously. We provide training and technical assistance to government organizations and have an extensive program to coordinate audit efficiency and to ensure high-quality audits. To learn more, explore the material in the Center for Government Innovation.

”

Divisions

Note: Ballotpedia's state executive officials project researches state official websites for information that describes the divisions (if any exist) of a state executive office. That information for the Washington State Auditor has not yet been added. After extensive research we were unable to identify any relevant information on state official websites. If you have any additional information about this office for inclusion on this section and/or page, please email us.

State budget

See also: Washington state budget and finances

The budget for the Auditor's Office in Fiscal Year 2024-2025 was $22,542,000.

Compensation

See also: Compensation of state executive officers

Article III, Section 20 of the state constitution initially set the annual salary of the auditor at $2,000 but allowed for the state legislature to increase it.

2022

In 2022, the officer's salary was $132,212, according to the Council of State Governments.

2021

In 2021, the auditor received a salary of $132,212, according to the Council of State Governments.

2020

In 2020, the auditor received a salary of $128,120 according to the Council of State Governments.

2019

In 2019, the auditor received a salary of $124,108 according to the Council of State Governments.

2018

In 2018, the auditor received a salary of $122,880 according to the Council of State Governments.

2017

In 2017, the auditor received a salary of $121,663 according to the Council of State Governments.

2016

In 2016, the auditor’s salary was increased to $120,459 according to the Council of State Governments.

2015

In 2015, the auditor received a salary $116,950 according to the Council of State Governments.

2014

In 2014, the auditor received a salary of $116,950 according to the Council of State Governments.

2013

In 2013, the auditor received a salary of $116,950 according to the Council of State Governments.

2012

In 2012, the auditor received a salary of $116,950 according to the Council of State Governments.

Historical officeholders

Note: Ballotpedia's state executive officials project researches state official websites for chronological lists of historical officeholders; information for the Washington State Auditor has not yet been added because the information was unavailable on the relevant state official websites, or we are currently in the process of formatting the list for this office. If you have any additional information about this office for inclusion on this section and/or page, please email us.

Recent news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Washington State Auditor. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

Washington State Auditor - Google News

Contact information

Washington State Auditor
302 Sid Snyder Avenue SW
Olympia, Washington 98504-0021
Phone: (564) 999-0950

External links

Suggest a link

• Washington State Auditor