Amy Walen is the rare legislator who pairs Democratic priorities with the skill to actually pass them, and she’s built the broad support to show for it. She chairs the House Consumer Protection and Business Committee, and her backers run from former Governor Christine Gregoire and Congressman Adam Smith to mayors and councilmembers across the Eastside.

Her record is concrete. When the Trump administration threatened Washington’s immigrant families, she co-sponsored the Keep Washington Working Act and wrote the law letting Dreamers earn professional licenses here. She wrote HB 1757 to turn empty commercial buildings into housing, took on the predatory collectors who chase families for debt they no longer owe, and has fought for affordable childcare, paid family leave, and tax relief for working families. 

A former Kirkland mayor who ran a company before she got to Olympia, Walen knows how to balance a budget without losing sight of who it’s for. We were glad to back her last cycle, and the case has only gotten stronger. She’s an effective, pragmatic Democrat who delivers, and she’s earned another term in the 48th.

Endorsements include former Governor Christine Gregoire, Lieutenant Governor Denny Heck, Congressman Adam Smith, the Alliance for Gun Responsibility Victory Fund, Moms Demand Action, the National Women’s Political Caucus of Washington, FairVote Washington, the Children’s Campaign Fund, Democrats for Diversity & Inclusion, and IUPAT DC5. 

Osman Salahuddin got to Olympia and went to work. Appointed to the seat in early 2025 and elected that November, he’s the youngest member of the Legislature and the only South Asian in the House. He grew up in Redmond, the son of immigrants. His mom’s a special-ed teacher and his dad runs a small business. He studied neurobiology at UW and worked as a researcher at Fred Hutch and UW Medicine before joining the Redmond City Council. Today he’s pursuing a law degree at UW while serving in the Legislature.

In short order he’s built a real record. He wrote bills to toughen sentencing for rape that results in pregnancy, to put trained clinicians on behavioral-health crisis calls, to let workers use sick leave for immigration hearings, and to give students a real vote on the board that runs the state’s community colleges.

Salahuddin is focused on the cost of housing, access to healthcare, and well-funded schools. We recommended him last cycle, and he’s more than justified that support. For a lawmaker barely two years in, he’s already shown he can move bills that matter, and he’s earned a full term of his own.

Endorsements include Governor Bob Ferguson, Congresswoman Suzan DelBene, the Washington State Building & Construction Trades Council, LiUNA Laborers Local 242, the Washington State Nurses Association, Planned Parenthood Alliance Advocates, and One America Votes.