Rep. Hansen begins new term in state House

The 2013 Regular Session of the Washington State Legislature began today, and Rep. Drew Hansen of Bainbridge Island joined with other members of the House of Representatives in taking the oath of office.

Hansen, who serves in Position 2 of the 23rd Legislative District, was returned to office by voters in the November General Election. He was appointed to the 23rd House seat in September 2011 to fill the vacancy left by Christine Rolfes' departure for the state Senate.

Hansen was sworn in during a group ceremony for incoming lawmakers on the House floor.

“It’s such an honor to stand in that chamber and take that oath to uphold the United States and Washington Constitutions," Hansen said.

"It means even more than usual this year, when the Washington Supreme Court has ordered us to direct more money toward our schools, and one of the session’s major challenges will be figuring out how to pay for that,” he said.

Hansen is a member of the House Higher Education Committee. He is also a member of the House Finance Committee, and will serve as the vice chairman of the Judiciary Committee.

Hansen, a Rhodes Scholar who has degrees from Harvard and Yale Law School, is a partner at the law firm of Susman Godfrey in Seattle, where he represents plaintiffs and defendants in civil litigation. He served for six years as a governor-appointed member of the Community Economic Revitalization Board, and served six years on the Olympic College Foundation Board.

He is also the author of a book, “The Dream: Martin Luther King Jr. and the Speech that Inspired a Nation," and spent much of last week as a guest speaker at multiple events on Bainbridge Island where he spoke about the famed Civil Rights leader.

 

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