OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) — For the fourth time in as many years, the state House has passed a measure seeking to reform representation of minorities in local elections.
The Democratic-controlled chamber passed House Bill 1745 on a 50-47 vote, and the measure now heads to the Republican-controlled Senate, where it is not expected to gain traction.
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Washington voters decisively backed expanded background checks for guns, a victory for advocates of stricter gun laws who say they will use the momentum from to pursue similar measures in other states.
With the passage of Initiative 594, Washington joins six other states and the District of Columbia with laws that require universal background checks for all sales and transfers of firearms, though
President Obama became an official "lame duck" when Republicans gained control of the United States Senate and expanded their majority in the House of Representatives after Tuesday's elections. What next?
The key question hanging over legislative races today is which party will lead the state Senate for the next two years, a result that will have a role in defining the second-half of Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee's term.
Inslee's agenda on climate change and transportation have been largely stifled by the GOP-controlled Senate in the last two years...