David S. Frockt (born July 14, 1969) is an American politician and attorney 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 ...

for the 46th legislative district, which includes North

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, Lake Forest Park, and Kenmore.

Early life and education

Frockt was born in

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

to Jewish parents, Stephen and Madolyn Frockt. He grew up in

Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

and attended Ballard High School. He graduated with honors from the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

with a B.A. in

Political Science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

in 1991 and later from the

UCLA School of Law The UCLA School of Law is one of 12 professional schools at the University of California, Los Angeles. UCLA Law has been consistently ranked by '' U.S. News & World Report'' as one of the top 20 law schools in the United States since the inception ...

in 1998.

Career

Washington State Legislature

David began his career first elected to the

Washington State 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 dis ...

in 2010. In 2011 following the passing of Senator Scott White, the Metropolitan King County Council voted unanimously to appoint David to represent the 46th District in the State Senate. Voters retained him in 2012 to serve the remaining two years of the open Senate term. He was re-elected in 2014 to a full term in the State Senate, winning 80% of the vote. Frockt is currently a member on the Ways & Means, Law & Justice, and Human Services committees. On October 5, 2021, he announced that he would not seek re-election to a fourth term.

Education

Frockt, as capital budget writer, was instrumental in passing Washington's capital budget in 2018. The budget was $4 billion and included $1 billion for K-12 public schools and $861 million for higher education. Frockt has advocated for fully funding and expanding the WA State Need Grant to increase financial aid for middle-class students seeking higher education. In 2012, Frockt sponsored a bill to provide aid for higher education students to receive student loan counseling in an effort to limit the student debt crisis.

Gun Control

Frockt has been a prominent advocate in the State Senate for gun control. In the 2017–2018 legislative session, Frockt sponsored and helped pass legislation that banned

bump stock Bump stocks or bump fire stocks are gun stocks that can be used to assist in bump firing. Bump firing is the act of using the recoil of a semi-automatic firearm to fire ammunition cartridges in rapid succession. The legality of bump stocks in ...

s and other trigger modifications in

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. He also sponsored a bill that added domestic violence to a list of offenses that prohibit the ownership of firearms. In addition, Frockt introduced Senate Bill 6620, which would raise the age for purchasing a semi-automatic rifle from 18 to 21 and enhance the background check system when purchasing a firearm. The bill would also create an emergency response system in schools in the event of an emergency.

Awards

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

References

1969 births Democratic Party Washington (state) state senators Living people 21st-century American politicians Politicians from Louisville, Kentucky University of Pennsylvania alumni UCLA School of Law alumni Democratic Party members of the Washington House of Representatives {{Washington-politician-stub