Sen. Fortunato To Run For Washington Governor

BONNEY LAKE, WA — One of the state's most prominent conservatives has filed to run for governor in 2020, according to state records. Bonney Lake Sen. Phil Fortunato is one of three Republicans who have filed to run against incumbent Gov. Jay Inslee, who may or may not end up in the race.

Fortunato filed to run for governor in 2020 on Aug. 1, which was first reported by the Seattle Times. Loren Culp, the I-1639-refusing police chief in Republic, and Trump supporter Anton Sakharov have also filed to run in 2020.

Fortunato was appointed to his Senate seat in the 31st Legislative District in January 2017 to replace another fiery conservative, Pierce County Councilwoman Pam Roach. He defeated Auburn Democrat Michelle Rylands in a 2017 special election to keep the seat. In 2018, Fortunato won reeletion with about 60 percent of the vote in a race against Democrat Immaculate Ferreria.

Since then, he's opposed laws that restrict federal immigration activities in Washington, proposed arming childcare workers with guns, and tried to expand the use of inmates to pick up roadside litter.

Inslee has not said yet whether he plans to run for governor in 2020, although he has about $200,000 on hand for the race, according to campaign finance filings. Meanwhile, King County Executive Dow Constantine and Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz may enter the race. Democrat Gene Hart, who ran Bremerton Port Commission in 2009, registered his 2020 gubernatorial campaign back in December.

Correction: An earlier version of this story misstated Fortunato's recent electoral history, omitting his 2018 race with Immaculate Ferreria.