Emily Elissa Randall (born 1985) is an American politician and activist who is a member of the

Washington State Senate The Washington State Senate is the upper house of the Washington State Legislature. The body consists of 49 members, each representing a district with a population of nearly 160,000. The State Senate meets at the Legislative Building in Olympi ...

from the 26th district."New Washington state legislators headed to Olympia in 2019"
''MyNorthwest'', December 31, 2018. A member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

, she was elected in 2018.

Early life and education

Randall was born and raised on the

Kitsap Peninsula The Kitsap Peninsula () lies west of Seattle across Puget Sound, in Washington state in the Pacific Northwest. Hood Canal separates the peninsula from the Olympic Peninsula on its west side. The peninsula, a.k.a. "Kitsap", encompasses all of Kits ...

. She graduated from

Wellesley College Wellesley College is a private women's liberal arts college in Wellesley, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1870 by Henry and Pauline Durant as a female seminary, it is a member of the original Seven Sisters Colleges, an unofficial g ...

with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Spanish and women's studies. Her sister, Olivia, was born with severe developmental and physical disabilities.

Career

Alongside Senator Claire Wilson, she is one of the first two openly-

LGBTQ ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is a ...

women to serve in the

. Prior to serving in the senate, Randall worked as a community organizer, where she focused on issues related to public education and healthcare. As senator, Randall has focused on increasing access to better behavioral and reproductive health, affordable housing, and public safety. She serves as whip for the state senate majority. In March 2022, Randall sponsored a bill to lower the toll to cross the

Tacoma Narrows Bridge The Tacoma Narrows Bridge is a pair of twin suspension bridges that span the Tacoma Narrows strait of Puget Sound in Pierce County, Washington. The bridges connect the city of Tacoma with the Kitsap Peninsula and carry State Route 16 (know ...

by 75 cents. The bill was passed and took effect in October of the same year. Randall serves in the senate’s Higher Education committee, Workforce Development Committee, and on the Health and Long Term Care and Transportation committee.

Election

In 2018, Randall defeated Republican challenger Marty McClendon 35,087 to 34,983, a margin of 104 votes. In 2022, Randall won re-election with around 51%.

References

1985 births 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians Democratic Party Washington (state) state senators American lesbian politicians LGBT state legislators in Washington (state) Living people Wellesley College alumni Women state legislators in Washington (state) {{Washington-politician-stub