Jeanne L. Darneille (born July 9, 1949) is an American politician and educator who served as 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 ...

, representing the 27th district from 2013 until her resignation in 2021. 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 previously served as a member of the

Washington House of Representatives The Washington House of Representatives is the lower house of the Washington State Legislature, and along with the Washington State Senate makes up the legislature of the U.S. state of Washington. It is composed of 98 Representatives from 49 ...

from 2001 to 2013.

Early life and education

Darneille a native of

Fairbanks, Alaska Fairbanks is a home rule city and the borough seat of the Fairbanks North Star Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. Fairbanks is the largest city in the Interior region of Alaska and the second largest in the state. The 2020 Census put the po ...

, the oldest of six children. Darneille's father was a member of the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

. After high school, she attended

Tacoma Community College Tacoma Community College (TCC) is a public community college in Tacoma, Washington with operations in Tacoma and Gig Harbor. It serves the city of Tacoma and the Pierce County portion of the Kitsap Peninsula. History TCC's creation was author ...

. Darneille earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in art history from Western Washington University and a Master of education administration from the

Colorado State University Colorado State University (Colorado State or CSU) is a public land-grant research university in Fort Collins, Colorado. It is the flagship university of the Colorado State University System. Colorado State University is classified among "R1: ...

Career

Darneille worked as a volunteer at

Planned Parenthood The Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc. (PPFA), or simply Planned Parenthood, is a nonprofit organization that provides reproductive health care in the United States and globally. It is a tax-exempt corporation under Internal Reve ...

in Bellingham, Washington. She served as Executive Director for the Hospitality House Shelter for Women and Interim Executive Director for United Cerebral Palsy of South Puget Sound. She was Vice Chair of the Pierce County Democratic Central Committee and served as a legislative aide to former State Senator

R. Lorraine Wojahn Ruth Lorraine Wojahn (née Kendall; September 17, 1920 – October 13, 2012) was an American politician in the state of Washington. Born in Easton, Washington, she attended the University of Washington. Wojahn served in Washington House of Rep ...

. Darneille was elected to the

from the 27th district in 2001, serving until 2013. In 2012, she was elected to the

. She assumed office in 2013. She was selected to run the Department of Correction's (DOC) Women's Prison Division on September 21, 2021, starting fall 2021.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Darneille, Jeannie 1949 births Living people Democratic Party members of the Washington House of Representatives Women state legislators in Washington (state) 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians Democratic Party Washington (state) state senators