Joseph Peter Zarelli (; born October 7, 1961) is an American former politician of the Republican Party. He was 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

Washington's 18th legislative district Washington's 18th legislative district is one of forty-nine districts in Washington state for representation in the state legislature. The district is located within Clark County, bordering the 20th district in the north, the 14th district in ...

from 1995 to 2012.

Political career

After serving as a top Senate Republican for several years, Zarelli announced his retirement at the end of his current term on May 19, 2012. Jaime Herrera was an intern in Zarelli's office and he was a major supporter of her rise in politics.

Personal information

According to his official Legislative biography, Senator Zarelli owns a company specializing in business development and risk management services. He served in the U.S. Navy from 1982 to 1989. He earned an

Associate's degree An associate degree is an undergraduate degree awarded after a course of post-secondary study lasting two to three years. It is a level of qualification above a high school diploma, GED, or matriculation, and below a bachelor's degree. The fi ...

from

Clark College Clark College is a public community college in Vancouver, Washington. With 11,500 students, Clark College is the largest institution of higher education in southwest Washington. Founded in 1933 as a private two-year junior college, Clark Colleg ...

in 1991. Joe and his wife Tani, have four daughters and two grandchildren. The couple filed petitions for divorce and for legal separation in November 2013.

Political controversies

Zarelli was briefly dogged by controversy in 2002 when the

Seattle Times ''The Seattle Times'' is a daily newspaper serving Seattle, Washington, United States. It was founded in 1891 and has been owned by the Blethen family since 1896. ''The Seattle Times'' has the largest circulation of any newspaper in Washington st ...

reported on the fact that he collected unemployment while simultaneously serving in the State Legislature. This was seen as especially embarrassing because Zarelli had a well-established political identity as a fiscal conservative. Zarelli defended himself by arguing that the State Employment Security Department had found him to be eligible for benefits, and there were never any allegations of unsavory dealings behind the awarding of benefits. The controversy soon passed.

Sources

1961 births Living people Clark College alumni Republican Party Washington (state) state senators People from Ridgefield, Washington United States Navy sailors Politicians from Tacoma, Washington {{Washington-politician-stub