Washington State Senate elections, 2026

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2026 Washington
Senate Elections
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PrimaryPending
GeneralNovember 3, 2026
Past Election Results
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2026 Elections
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Elections for the Washington State Senate will take place in 2026. The general election is on November 3, 2026.

The Washington State Senate is one of 88 state legislative chambers with elections in 2026. There are 99 chambers throughout the country.

Party control

See also: Partisan composition of state senates and State government trifectas
Party As of March 2025
     Democratic Party 30
     Republican Party 19
     Other 0
     Vacancies 0
Total 49

Candidates

Note: The following list includes official candidates only. Ballotpedia defines official candidates as people who:

  • Register with a federal or state campaign finance agency before the candidate filing deadline
  • Appear on candidate lists released by government election agencies

This list will be updated after the candidate filing deadline has passed and the official list of candidates becomes available. Please contact us if you notice an official candidate missing from the list or the inclusion of a candidate who withdrew.

Primary

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General election

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Voting information

See also: Voting in Washington

Ballotpedia will publish the dates and deadlines related to this election as they are made available.


Competitiveness

This section will be updated with information about the competitiveness of state legislative elections in Washington. For more information about Ballotpedia's Competitiveness Analysis of state legislative elections, please click here.

Process to become a candidate

See also: Ballot access requirements for political candidates in Washington

DocumentIcon.jpg See statutes: Chapter 29A.24 of the Washington Election Code

A candidate who desires to have his or her name printed on the ballot for election to an office other than president must complete and file a declaration of candidacy. The candidate must do the following:

  • declare that he or she is a registered voter within the jurisdiction of the office for which he or she is filing (the candidate must include the address at which he or she is registered)
  • indicate the position for which he or she is filing
  • state a party preference, if the office is a partisan office
  • indicate the amount of the filing fee accompanying the declaration of candidacy (the candidate may also indicate that he or she is filing a petition in lieu of the filing fee)
  • sign the declaration of candidacy, stating that the information provided on the form is true and swearing or affirming that he or she will support the constitution and laws of the United States and the constitution and laws of the state of Washington[1]

The filing period for candidates begins on the Monday two weeks before Memorial Day and ends the following Friday in the year in which the office is scheduled to be voted upon. Candidates must also submit the declaration of candidacy to the Washington Public Disclosure Commission within one business day after the filing period has ended.[2][3]

A filing fee equal to 1 percent of the annual salary of the office at the time of filing must accompany the declaration of candidacy for any office with a fixed annual salary of more than $1,000.

A candidate who lacks sufficient assets or income at the time of filing may submit with his or her declaration of candidacy a filing fee petition. The petition must contain signatures from registered voters equal to the number of dollars of the filing fee.

For write-in candidates

Any person who desires to be a write-in candidate and have his or her votes counted at a primary or general election can file a declaration of candidacy with the Washington Secretary of State and the Washington Public Disclosure Commission no later than 18 days before a primary or general election. A declaration of candidacy for a write-in candidate must be accompanied by a filing fee or a filing fee petition with the required signatures (fee amounts and signature requirements are the same as those stated above). Write-in votes cast for any candidates who fail to file this form will only be counted if the voter indicates "the office sought or position number, if the manner in which the write-in is done does not make the office or position clear."[4]

Qualifications

See also: State legislature candidate requirements by state

Section 7 of Article 2 of the Washington Constitution states, "No person shall be eligible to the legislature who shall not be a citizen of the United States and a qualified voter in the district for which he is chosen."

Salaries and per diem

See also: Comparison of state legislative salaries
State legislative salaries, 2024[5]
SalaryPer diem
$60,191/year for senators. $61,997/year for representatives.$202/day

When sworn in

See also: When state legislators assume office after a general election

Washington legislators assume office the second Monday of January.[6]

Washington political history

Trifectas

A state government trifecta is a term that describes single-party government, when one political party holds the governor's office and has majorities in both chambers of the legislature in a state government.

Washington Party Control: 1992-2024
Eighteen years of Democratic trifectas  •  No Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

Year 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24
Governor D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D
Senate R D D D D R R D D D D R R D D D D D D D D R R R R R[7] D D D D D D D
House D D D R R R R S S S D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D

Presidential politics in Washington

2024

See also: Presidential election, 2024


Presidential election in Washington, 2024
 
Candidate/Running mate
%
Popular votes
Electoral votes
Image of
Image of
Kamala D. Harris/Tim Walz (D)
 
57.2
 
2,245,849 12
Image of
Image of
Donald Trump/J.D. Vance (R)
 
39.0
 
1,530,923 0
Image of
Image of
Robert F. Kennedy Jr./Nicole Shanahan (We the People)
 
1.4
 
54,868 0
Image of
Image of
Jill Stein/Butch Ware (G)
 
0.8
 
29,754 0
Image of
Image of
Chase Oliver/Mike ter Maat (L)
 
0.4
 
16,428 0
Image of
Image of
Claudia De La Cruz/Karina Garcia (Party for Socialism and Liberation)
 
0.2
 
8,695 0
Image of
Image of
Cornel West/Melina Abdullah (Justice for All)
 
0.2
 
7,254 0
Image of
Image of
Shiva Ayyadurai/Crystal Ellis (Independent)
 
0.1
 
3,323 0
Image of
Image of
Joseph Kishore/Jerry White (Socialist Equality Party)
 
0.0
 
917 0
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Image of
Rachele Fruit/Dennis Richter (Socialist Workers Party)
 
0.0
 
824 0
  Other write-in votes
 
0.6
 
25,408 0

Total votes: 3,924,243


2020

See also: Presidential election, 2020


Presidential election in Washington, 2020
 
Candidate/Running mate
%
Popular votes
Electoral votes
Image of
Image of
Joe Biden/Kamala D. Harris (D)
 
58.0
 
2,369,612 12
Image of
Image of
Donald Trump/Mike Pence (R)
 
38.8
 
1,584,651 0
Image of
Image of
Jo Jorgensen/Spike Cohen (L)
 
2.0
 
80,500 0
Image of
Image of
Howie Hawkins/Angela Nicole Walker (G)
 
0.4
 
18,289 0
Image of
Image of
Gloria La Riva/Sunil Freeman (Party for Socialism and Liberation)
 
0.1
 
4,840 0
Image of
Image of
Alyson Kennedy/Malcolm Jarrett (Socialist Workers Party)
 
0.1
 
2,487 0
  Other write-in votes
 
0.7
 
27,252 0

Total votes: 4,087,631


2016

See also: Presidential election, 2016
U.S. presidential election, Washington, 2016
Party Candidate Vote % Votes Electoral votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngHillary Clinton/Tim Kaine 52.5% 1,742,718 12
     Republican Donald Trump/Mike Pence 36.8% 1,221,747 0
     Libertarian Gary Johnson/Bill Weld 4.9% 160,879 0
     Green Jill Stein/Ajamu Baraka 1.8% 58,417 0
     Socialist Workers Alyson Kennedy/Osborne Hart 0.1% 4,307 0
     Socialism and Liberation Gloria Estela La Riva/Eugene Puryear 0.1% 3,523 0
     Constitution Darrell Lane Castle/Scott Bradley 0.5% 17,623 0
     - Other/Write-in 3.3% 107,805 0
Total Votes 3,317,019 12
Election results via: Federal Election Commission


Washington presidential election results (1900-2024)

  • 18 Democratic wins
  • 13 Republican wins
  • 1 other win
Year 1900 1904 1908 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1940 1944 1948 1952 1956 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024
Winning Party R R R P[8] D R R R D D D D D R R R D D R R R R D D D D D D D D D D


Redistricting following the 2020 census

On March 15, 2024, Judge Robert Lasnik of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington ordered the state to adopt a new legislative map named Remedial Map 3B that complies with the Voting Rights Act. Judge Lasnik ordered Washington to redraw a legislative district in the Yakima Valley region because its boundaries undermined the ability of Latino voters to participate equally in elections. According to the district court's decision:[9][10]

The task of fashioning a remedy for a Voting Rights Act violation is not one that falls within the Court’s normal duties. It is only because the State declined to reconvene the Redistricting Commission – with its expertise, staff, and ability to solicit public comments – that the Court was compelled to step in. Nevertheless, with the comprehensive and extensive presentations from the parties, the participation of the Yakama Nation, and the able assistance of Ms. Mac Donald, the Court is confident that the adopted map best achieves the many goals of the remedial process. The Secretary of State is hereby ORDERED to conduct future elections according to Remedial Map 3B...[10][11]


See also

Washington State Legislative Elections News and Analysis
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Washington State Executive Offices
Washington State Legislature
Washington Courts
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Washington elections: 202320222021202020192018201720162015
Party control of state government
State government trifectas
Partisan composition of state legislatures
Partisan composition of state senates
Partisan composition of state houses

External links

Footnotes


Current members of the Washington State Senate
Leadership
Majority Leader:Jamie Pedersen
Minority Leader:John Braun
Senators
District 1
District 2
District 3
District 4
District 5
District 6
Jeff Holy (R)
District 7
District 8
District 9
District 10
District 11
District 12
District 13
District 14
District 15
District 16
District 17
District 18
District 19
District 20
District 21
District 22
District 23
District 24
District 25
District 26
District 27
District 28
District 29
District 30
District 31
District 32
District 33
District 34
District 35
District 36
District 37
District 38
District 39
District 40
District 41
District 42
District 43
District 44
District 45
District 46
District 47
District 48
District 49
Democratic Party (30)
Republican Party (19)