Keith Leonard Wagoner (born 1961) is an American politician currently serving in 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 Olymp ...

representing

Washington's 39th legislative district Washington's 39th legislative district is one of forty-nine districts in Washington state for representation in the state legislature. The rural district contains most of Snohomish and Skagit counties and the northeastern corner of King Count ...

, He previously served as mayor of

Sedro-Woolley, Washington Sedro-Woolley is a city in Skagit County, Washington, United States. It is part of the Mount Vernon–Anacortes, Washington Metropolitan Statistical Area and had a population of 12,421 at the 2020 census. The city is home to North Cascade ...

. He is a member of the Republican Party.

Early life, education, and military career

Wagoner grew up on a farm in Alger, Skagit County, Washington and graduated from Burlington-Edison High School in 1979. Following high school graduation, he attended

Washington State University Washington State University (Washington State, WSU, or informally Wazzu) is a public land-grant research university with its flagship, and oldest, campus in Pullman, Washington. Founded in 1890, WSU is also one of the oldest land-grant uni ...

until he received an appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. Following his graduation from the USNA in 1984 with a

Bachelor of Science degree A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

in physical oceanography, Wagoner was commissioned a second lieutenant in the U.S. Marine Corps. After completing Marine Officer Training at

Quantico, Virginia Quantico ( or ; formerly Potomac) is a town in Prince William County, Virginia, United States. The population was 480 at the 2010 census. Quantico is approximately 35 miles southwest of Washington, DC, bordered by the Potomac River to the east ...

, he took an inter-service transfer for Naval Aviation flight training at

NAS Pensacola Naval Air Station Pensacola or NAS Pensacola (formerly NAS/KNAS until changed circa 1970 to allow Nassau International Airport, now Lynden Pindling International Airport, to have IATA code NAS), "The Cradle of Naval Aviation", is a United State ...

in Florida. He earned his pilot's wings in 1986. In addition to his bachelor's degree, Wagoner also has a

Master's Degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

in Global Leadership from the University of San Diego. While a Naval Aviator, Wagoner flew the

CH-53E Super Stallion The Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallion is a heavy-lift helicopter operated by the United States military. As the Sikorsky S-80, it was developed from the CH-53 Sea Stallion, mainly by adding a third engine, adding a seventh blade to the main rotor, ...

helicopter and the

CH-46 Sea Knight The Boeing Vertol CH-46 Sea Knight is a medium-lift tandem-rotor transport helicopter powered by twin turboshaft engines. It was designed by Vertol and manufactured by Boeing Vertol following Vertol's acquisition by Boeing. Development of ...

helicopter. His Navy career spanned 23 years with duty stations in

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

Okinawa is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city ...

Guam Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...

Seoul, Korea Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 of ...

and

Tokyo, Japan Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

, among others. He retired from the Navy as a Commander in 2007.

Political career

In 2007, Wagoner and his wife returned to

Skagit County Skagit County is a county in the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2020 census, the population was 129,523. The county seat and largest city is Mount Vernon. The county was formed in 1883 from Whatcom County and is named for the Skagit Ind ...

to live in Sedro Woolley. Not long after their relocation, Wagoner ran for and won a seat on the Sedro Woolley City Council. After five years on the council, he won the town mayoral seat and was in that position for two years before being selected unanimously by a vote of electors to the 39th Legislative District's vacant senate seat on January 3, 2018. The district contains parts of

Snohomish County Snohomish County () is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. With a population of 827,957 as of the 2020 census, it is the third-most populous county in Washington, after nearby King and Pierce counties, and the 75th-most populous ...

, and King County. Wagoner ran for the same seat in November 2018 and was elected by a 2/3 majority. He won re-election in 2020. Currently, Wagoner serves on the Early Learning and K-12 Education Committee and the Ways and Means Committee. He is the Republican lead on the Behavioral Health Subcommittee. Wagoner is on record as a supporter of former President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...

. Shortly after the 2020 United States presidential election, Wagoner stated he felt "The process has not played out". He did not claim the election was "stolen" but explained that there are Republicans who do not trust the voting system in the state or in the country. On November 30, 2021, Wagoner announced that he would run for

Washington Secretary of State The secretary of state of Washington is an independently elected constitutional officer in the executive branch of the government of the U.S. state of Washington. Fifteen individuals have held the office of Secretary of State since statehood. The ...

, challenging appointed incumbent

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

Steve Hobbs in

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretariat; The global monkeypo ...

Personal life

Wagoner's wife is Wen Wagoner; together they have three adult children, one of which is a graduate of the US Naval Academy. Wagoner lives with his wife in

Awards

* 2020 Senate Legislator of the Year. Presented by The Washington State

Fraternal Order of Police The Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) is a fraternal organization consisting of sworn law enforcement officers in the United States. It reports a membership of over 355,000 members organized in 2,100 local chapters (lodges), state lodges, and th ...

. * 2021 City Champion Awards. Presented by Association of Washington Cities (AWC).

References

External links

Keith Wagoner at ballotpedia.org

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wagoner, Keith 1961 births 21st-century American politicians Living people Republican Party Washington (state) state senators