Secretary of State of Washington

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Secretary of State of Washington
File:Seal of Washington.svg
Incumbent
Steve Hobbs
since November 22, 2021
Style
SeatWashington State Capitol
Olympia, Washington
Term lengthFour years, no term limits
Constituting instrumentWashington Constitution of 1889: Article II, Section 1; Article III, Sections 1, 3, 4, 10, 12, 15, 17, 18, and 24; Article IV, Sections 3 and 28; Article V, Section 2; Article XXVII, Section 12; and Article XXVIII, Section 1[1]
Inaugural holderAllan Weir
FormationNovember 11, 1889
(136 years ago) (November 11, 1889)
Salary$154,588[2]
WebsiteOfficial page

The secretary of state of Washington is an independently elected constitutional officer in the executive branch of the government of the U.S. state of Washington. Fifteen individuals have held the office of Secretary of State since statehood. The incumbent is Steve Hobbs, a Democrat.[3]

The Secretary of State most notably manages elections, the office that posts the names of candidates for public offices manages the printing and distribution of ballots.[4]  

Qualifications

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To hold office as Secretary of State, a person must be a United States citizen registered to vote in the state of Washington, provide a $10,000 surety bond to the state conditioned on faithful execution of the duties of office, and reside in the city of Olympia, Washington, by the time of inauguration. Only the governor, state treasurer and secretary of state are constitutionally required to live in the capital city.

A surety bond is an official bond that official must pay to ensure that can be held accountable in cases of fraud or malpractice. The surety bond for Secretary of State is $10,000 to cover the duration of a 4-year commission. [5]

Every 10 years the U.S Bureau requires a redistricting of the national, state and local legislatures to ensure that U.S citizens get equal representation. This process involves the Secretary of State, the Governor and the state legislatures playing key roles in deciding the reshaping of districts.  [6]

Powers and duties

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The secretary of state is in effect the guarantor of the continuity and stability of good government in Washington, with his or her role extending to the certification, filing, and preservation of public records, the supervision of all aspects of state and local elections, and the registration and regulatory oversight of businesses and charities.[7]

Records management

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The secretary of state is the keeper of the Seal of Washington as prescribed by the constitution, and as such is responsible for regulating its use and certifying to the official acts of the Legislature and governor.[8][9] In this role, the secretary of state has additional duties related to the disposition of state honors and records. For example, the secretary of state regulates the use of the Washington State flag and is an ex officio non-voting member on the committees for the Washington Medal of Valor and the Washington Medal of Merit.[10][11] Similarly, the secretary of state directs and supervises Washington's state archives and state library. The state archives coordinates the preservation and management of public records across government, whereas the state library maintains libraries in correctional and mental health institutions and supports scholarly study of its vast research collections.[12][13]

Election administration

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The Elections Division of the Office of the Secretary of State has general oversight of election administration throughout the state, with individual county auditors being responsible for candidate registration, ballot preparation, polling, and canvassing.[14] The secretary of state exercises this constitutional power, duty, and authority as chief election officer by accrediting the balloting procedures used by each county, certifying the results of elections, verifying petition signatures used to qualify initiatives and referendums, and distributing the state voter's pamphlet and official notice of elections advertisements.[15] Lobbying and campaign finance are separately regulated by the Washington State Public Disclosure Commission.[16]

Business registration

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The Corporations Division of the Office of the Secretary of State registers a variety of business associations by virtue of the secretary of state's role as company register, including corporations, cooperatives, limited liability companies, limited liability partnerships, limited partnerships, assumed business names, and trademarks.[17][18] The secretary also regulates charities and charitable trusts, including registering individuals, organizations and commercial fundraisers involved in charitable solicitations.[19] Unlike in some other states however, the secretary of state is not responsible for commissioning notaries or recording liens or financing statements under the Uniform Commercial Code. Those functions are instead performed by the Washington State Department of Licensing.[20][21]

Miscellaneous duties

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A variety of miscellaneous duties have been assigned to the secretary of state through statute, including coordination of the state's Address Confidentiality Program and administration of the state's workplace giving program, "the Combined Fund Drive".[22][23] Constitutionally speaking, the Secretary of State is likewise second (behind the lieutenant governor) in the line of succession to the office of Governor of Washington.[24]

Additionally the Secretary of State regulates the use of the state seal, filing or attesting to acts of the legislature or governor, certifying to the legislature all matters legally required to be certified.[25]

List of Washington secretaries of state

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The State of Washington has had a total of sixteen secretaries of state:[26]

# Image Name Term Party
1 File:Portrait of Allen Weir, first Secretary of State for Washington, circa 1889-1893 (cropped).jpg Allen Weir 1890–1893 Republican
2 File:Portrait of James Price, second Secretary of State for Washington, circa 1893-1897.jpg James Price 1893–1897 Republican
3 File:Portrait of Will D. Jenkins, 3rd Secretary of State for Washington, circa 1897-1901.jpg Will Jenkins 1897–1901 Populist
4 File:Portrait of Samuel Nichols, 4th Secretary of State for Washington, circa 1901-1909 (cropped).jpg Sam Nichols 1901–1909 Republican
5 File:Portrait of Captain Ithamar Howell, 5th Secretary of State for Washington, circa 1909-1920 (cropped).jpg Ithamar Howell 1909–1920 Republican
6 Jay Hinkle 1920–1933 Republican
7 Ernest Hutchinson 1933–1938 Democratic
8 Belle Reeves 1938–1948 Democratic
9 Earl Coe 1948–1957 Democratic
10 File:President of the Senate Victor A. Meyers High Res.jpg Victor Aloysius Meyers 1957–1965 Democratic
11 Lud Kramer 1965–1975 Republican
12 File:Bruce Chapman census.jpg Bruce K. Chapman 1975–1981 Republican
13 File:Ralph Munro.jpg Ralph Munro 1981–2001 Republican
14 File:Sam Reed - Washington secretary of state (cropped).jpg Sam Reed 2001–2013 Republican
15 File:Kim Wyman (cropped).jpg Kim Wyman 2013–2021 Republican
16 File:Steve Hobbs (cropped).jpg Steve Hobbs 2021–present Democratic

See also

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References

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  7. ^ About the Office
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  14. ^ Elections
  15. ^ Title 29A, Revised Code of Washington
  16. ^ Washington State Public Disclosure Commission homepage Archived 2008-09-13 at the Wayback Machine
  17. ^ Washington Secretary of State Corporations Division page
  18. ^ Comparison of business structures, from the Office of the Washington Secretary of State
  19. ^ Washington Secretary of State, Charities & Trusts Division
  20. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
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  22. ^ Washington State Address Confidentiality Program
  23. ^ Combined Fund Drive
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