Bradley Scott Owen (born May 23, 1950) is an American businessman and politician who served as the 15th

Lieutenant Governor of Washington The lieutenant governor of Washington is an elected office in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. The incumbent is Denny Heck, a Democratic Party (United States), Democrat who began his term in January 2021. The lieutenant governor s ...

from 1997 to 2017. 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 ...

, he was previously elected to the

Washington State Legislature The Washington State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Washington. It is a bicameral body, composed of the lower Washington House of Representatives, composed of 98 Representatives, and the upper Washington State Senat ...

from 1977 to 1997, spending six years 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 ...

and fourteen years 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 Olympi ...

Biography

Owen was born and raised in

Tacoma, Washington Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, Washington, Olympia, and northwest of Mount ...

. He was a small business owner before entering politics. He was elected as

Shelton Shelton may refer to: Places United Kingdom *Shelton, North Bedfordshire, in the parish of Dean and Shelton, Bedfordshire *Lower Shelton, in the parish of Marston Moretaine, Bedfordshire *Upper Shelton, in the parish of Marston Moretaine, Bedfor ...

City Finance Commissioner and to the

in 1976 and served in those capacities until 1983, when he was elected to the

. In 1989, he formed a non-profit organization called Strategies for Youth, first as a way to fight substance abuse among Washington's young people and later with a greater emphasis on bullying and respecting diversity. The program concluded in 2011. Brad Owen 2

In 1996, Owen moved from the legislature to the executive branch with his election as lieutenant governor. He was re-elected to that position in 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2012. Following findings by the state's Executive Ethics Commission that Owen improperly used tax-payer resources, which led to a $15,000 fine being imposed against him, Owen announced that he would not seek another term in the 2016 election. Prior to that announcement, three current legislators from his own party had already begun campaigning for his office. His final term expired in January 2017. He was succeeded in office by

Cyrus Habib Kamyar Cyrus Habib, (born August 22, 1981) is an American Jesuit, politician, lawyer, and educator who served as the 16th Lieutenant Governor of Washington from 2017 to 2021. As of the time of his departure from office, he was the first and only ...

. Owen is opposed to abortion, he campaigns against drug use and drug legalisation and he is described as "lukewarm" on gay rights. He has received criticism for his work ethic, not working outside of the legislative calendar, conducting

remote work Remote work, also called work from home (WFH), work from anywhere, telework, remote job, mobile work, and distance work is an employment arrangement in which employees do not commute to a central place of work, such as an office building, ware ...

and prioritizing his outside business interests ahead of his duties as Lieutenant Governor. In September 2014, he was fined $15,000 for breaking state law by using state resources to run Strategies for Youth, his personal non-profit group. On April 2, 2008, the King of Spain

Juan Carlos I Juan Carlos I (;, * ca, Joan Carles I, * gl, Xoán Carlos I, Juan Carlos Alfonso Víctor María de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias, born 5 January 1938) is a member of the Spanish royal family who reigned as King of Spain from 22 Novem ...

bestowed the ''

Order of Isabella the Catholic The Order of Isabella the Catholic ( es, Orden de Isabel la Católica) is a Spanish civil order and honor granted to persons and institutions in recognition of extraordinary services to the homeland or the promotion of international relations a ...

'', or Spanish knighthood, on Owen.

Electoral history

References

External links

Campaign website

Lieutenant Governor of Washington website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Owen, Brad 1950 births 21st-century American politicians American people of Welsh descent Lieutenant Governors of Washington (state) Living people Democratic Party members of the Washington House of Representatives Politicians from Tacoma, Washington Democratic Party Washington (state) state senators