Lieutenant Gov. Brad Owen plans a midday statement Tuesday on his political future. Most figure the punch line will be that he’s not going to run again.
Owen, a moderate Democrat from Shelton, was first elected in 1996 and re-elected to four additional terms. He also served in the state House from 1976-1983, and in the Senate from 1983-1996.
Owens’ five terms matches that of Democrat Vic Meyers for the second longest tenured lieutenant governors in state history. John Cherberg, also a Democrat, served the longest, 32 years in all, and wound up with name on a building on the Capitol campus.
Owen, in his terms, has guided the state Senate through its share of rough-and-tumble sessions with a steady hand and timely humor.
But it’s been clear for awhile he would face a tough time securing a sixth term, clear enough that eight people, including four Democratic state lawmakers, launched campaigns for the job.
In 2014, the Washington State Executive Ethics Board fined him for improper use of state resources in support of his now-defunct nonprofit Strategies for Youth. Among its findings, the board concluded staff in the lieutenant governor’s office worked on taxpayer time for the nonprofit.
Owen insisted he did nothing wrong but agreed to pay the fine to put the episode behind him. But that issue would certainly resurface if he chose to seek re-election.
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