When is a state Senate race not a state Senate race? When it's a race that will determine which party controls not just a legislative chamber, but also an entire state government.
The Washington state Senate should have a Democratic majority, but it doesn't. One turncoat senator who was elected as a Democrat caucuses with Republicans, and his defection has effectively given control of the chamber to the GOP and blocks Democrats from control of the state government “trifecta”: the House, Senate, and governorship.
This November, we can fix that.
A GOP-held Senate seat is open and will be filled by a special election on November 7. If Democrat Manka Dhingra wins, Democrats will have a governing majority in the chamber—and full control of state government—which is why Daily Kos is proud to endorse her.
Electing Dhingra to the 45th District Senate seat will end the Republican obstructionism that has blocked a state-level Voting Rights Act, legislation to increase women’s access to birth control, and paid sick leave for working families. In a blue state like Washington, all of these progressive priorities should be law. In the era of the Trump presidency, these policies would protect the state’s residents from GOP attacks at the federal level.
And yet things could soon get worse: The Senate GOP’s intransigence over the state’s budget and education funding is threatening to shut down state government, which would, among other things, halt supervision of 18,000 offenders on probation; freeze forensic processing of DNA evidence in rape and murder cases; and deprive 50,000 elderly residents from receiving meal services. A Democratic Senate majority will not only prevent another round of Republican hostage-taking, but it will also finally allow Washington to match its fellow states along the Pacific coast in terms of progressive policy accomplishments.
But beyond establishing another fully Democratic state to stand fast against Trump and his GOP accomplices' attacks on hardworking Americans, sending Dhingra to the Washington state Senate would put another dedicated progressive and woman of color in government, both of which are sorely needed not just in Washington but all over the country.
Dhingra, a first-time candidate, emigrated from India when she was a young child and has spent much of her adult life working to combat gun violence and domestic abuse. She is a senior deputy prosecutor in King County (home of Seattle) and a long-time advocate for women and immigrants’ rights. She works with law enforcement agencies to improve responses to incidents that involve those with mental health issues and to address hate crimes. Also, she’s an award-winning PTA mom.
Washington’s 45th District is in the greater Seattle metro area and is home to both tech companies (Redmond) and wineries (Woodinville). Dhingra is running to replace a popular Republican state senator who was first elected to the seat in the GOP wave of 2010 and passed away last summer. The Republican won the seat 53-47 in 2014, but the district went for Hillary Clinton by a wide 65-28 margin last fall after giving Barack Obama 60 percent of the vote four years earlier.
So while this is a heavily Democratic district on its face, it has a solid history of electing a Republican to the statehouse. Republicans are acutely aware that this one seat is all that’s keeping them from being shut out of real political power in the state, and they’re going to spend heavily to keep this district in GOP hands. This race is going to be one of the most expensive down-ballot contests in the country this fall, and Dhingra is going to need support from grassroots Democrats and progressives across the country to match GOP spending.
Please give Manka Dhingra $3 to help send a progressive woman of color to Washington’s Senate and turn the entire state blue!
