Washington’s Democrat governor will leave office at the end of his current term.
Governor Jay Inslee announced he is ready to “pass the torch” and that he would not seek a fourth term.
“Serving the people as governor of Washington state has been my greatest honor. During a decade of dynamic change, we’ve made Washington a beacon for progress for the nation,” Inslee said in a statement on May 1.
“Our last decade of Washington’s storied history is one of growth and innovation,” Inslee continued. “We’ve passed the nation’s best climate policies, the most successful family leave benefits, the best college scholarship programs, a more fair legal justice system, and the most protective actions against gun violence. We’ve shown that diversity is a strength worth fighting for. This has been ten years of dynamic success.”
“As governor, I have seen my role as inspiring our state ever forward and ever higher. I’m gratified to be able to say that this approach has worked to improve Washingtonians lives in many ways and many places,” the governor said.
The 72-year-old was first elected in 2012 and is just the second governor in Washington’s history to be elected three times. He won his latest reelection in 2020.
Washington does not have gubernatorial term limits.
Prior to his time as governor, Inslee was an eight-term United States Congressman.
“His liberal politics made him a boogeyman to critics on the right, who argued that he infringed on individual liberties,” reports Hearald Net. “Soon after Washington suffered the first known COVID-19 outbreak in the nation, he issued emergency orders mandating mask wearing and requiring that state employees and health workers be vaccinated.”
Inslee’s progressive views on abortion and transgenderism have put him at odds with the leaders of neighboring conservative states.
In early April, he lobbied Idaho Governor Brad Little to veto an abortion trafficking bill. He argued the proposed policy was a “gross abuse” of his residents’ right to travel between states that may place them in “grave danger.”
He also said he would work to protect any Idaho residents who enters his state for an abortion.
“Make no mistake, Governor Little, the laws of another state that seek to punish anyone in Washington for lawful actions taken in Washington will not stand,” wrote Inslee in his letter.
Inslee vowed to make Washington a “sanctuary state” for minors who identify as transgender. He supported Senate Bill 5599 which allows state officials to facilitate hormonal and surgical intervention treatments that are intended to alter a child’s biological sex characteristics – even if the child’s parents do not consent.
More recently, Inslee oversaw the formal abolishment of capital punishment in Washington. The governor had initiated a death penalty moratorium in 2014, four years before the state Supreme Court ruled against the punishment.
According to Politico, state Attorney General Bob Ferguson and Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz, both Democrats, are considering running for the governor’s office.
