From left (seated): Rep. Debra Entenman, Sen. Emily Randall, Sen. Mona Das, Sen. Rebecca Saldaña, Sen. Manka Dhingra, Rep. My-Linh Thai, Rep. Mia Gregerson. From left (standing): Rep. Monica Stonier, Rep. Debra Lekanoff, Rep. Kristine Reeves, Rep. Sharon Tomiko Santos, Rep. Cindy Ryu, Rep. Melanie Morgan, Rep. Lillian Ortiz-Self, Rep. Vandana Slatter (Photo from WA Senate Democrats)
OLYMPIA – The Washington State Legislature welcomed one of its most diverse cohorts of elected officials in state history on Jan. 14. The most recent class includes a female majority in the House Democratic Caucus with women of color serving in both the House and Senate leadership ranks.
Washington currently ranks fourth in the nation in terms of gender parity in the state legislature.
“We doubled the number of women of color in the Senate in 2018, and again in 2019. We now have the most diverse legislative body in Washington state history,” said Sen. Manka Dhingra, D-Redmond, who serves as the Senate’s Deputy Majority Leader. “We are finally starting to see elected officials reflect the diverse communities that make up our country. Policies developed with input from diverse stakeholders work best to address all of our needs.” Dhingra is the first Sikh elected to any state legislature in the nation.
Diversity is necessary for our multicultural culture to back government and feel their needs are represented.
We are moving in the right direction !