Paul Spencer Graves (born 1982) is an American lawyer and politician. A
Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
, he served in 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 ...
, for the
5th Legislative District.
Early life, education, and career
Before becoming a State Representative, Graves worked as an attorney at Perkins Coie LLP.
Following his departure from the State Legislature, Graves became president of Enterprise Washington, a pro-business lobbying organization based in
Bellevue, Washington
Bellevue ( ) is a city in the Eastside region of King County, Washington, United States, located across Lake Washington from Seattle. It is the third-largest city in the Seattle metropolitan area and has variously been characterized as ...
. He also served as the House Republican Caucus Appointee to the 2021-22
Washington State Redistricting Commission
The Washington State Redistricting Commission is a decennial body charged with redrawing congressional and legislative districts in the state of Washington after each census. On November 8, 1983, Washington state passed the 74th amendment to its ...
, and currently works as in-house counsel to Oak Harbor Freight Lines, a trucking company based in
Auburn, Washington.
Washington House of Representatives
Graves ran for the House seat following the announcement of the retirement of Representative
Chad Magendanz.
Graves defeated
Darcy Burner in the general election in 2016. In 2018, Graves lost re-election to
Lisa Callan, a
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 ...
, as both House positions in the 5th District flipped from Republicans to Democrats.
In the legislature, Graves was known for sponsoring legislation that would make the records of the legislature public.
See also
References
1982 births
Living people
Republican Party members of the Washington House of Representatives
21st-century American politicians
People from Fall City, Washington
Washington (state) lawyers
People associated with Perkins Coie
{{Washington-politician-stub