Washington Attorney General candidates incumbent Bob Ferguson and challenger Matt Larkin met with The Columbian’s Editorial Board virtually last week.

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Ferguson (D) has served as the state’s attorney general for eight years, after starting his legal career in Spokane serving as a law clerk for two federal judges and then as an attorney, according to his statement in the voters’ guide.

Larkin (R) writes that he is “not a career politician,” which he says allows him to “bring a fresh perspective” to the office. He is a veteran attorney licensed to practice law in Washington and Oregon.

“I’m running because, like a lot of people in this state, I’m frustrated,” Larkin said in the virtual debate. “I got into this race because I just feel like I don’t recognize this state anymore.”

Larkin says he has four young kids and wants them to grow up in a state that’s “heading in the right direction.”

He cites a concerning increase in crime statewide, adding that as attorney general, he would want to drive those numbers down and put an emphasis on criminal law.

“I want my kids to be as proud of this state as I am, because I am proud of this state,” he said.

While admitting that these are big challenges and there’s a lot of work to do, he thinks the attorney general’s office can refocus and work to make the state a better place.

Ferguson said he’s running for reelection with two key focuses:

“Number one, to continue to running an independent law firm on behalf of people in the state of Washington. And number two, to continue the focus I’ve brought to the office on the work we do directly on behalf of the people as the people’s law firm,” he said.

Ferugson says he set the tone on day one by keeping everyone in office after he took over from former attorney general Rob McKenna. The political party preferences of the staff, he says, did not concern him, and he knew they had a reputation for running an independent law firm, which is why he kept them on and many of them are still there.

“A key part of [the attorney general’s] job is defending and enforcing all Washington state laws whether you personally agree with those or not,” Ferguson said. “We’ve done that and done that well.”

Ferguson says before he was attorney general, the office did not do civil rights work on behalf of the people. He created a civil rights division that is now “the best in the country,” he said.

Watch the video of the full discussion between the two candidates above, or find it online here.

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