Nick Brown to become Washington’s next attorney general
Nov 6, 2024, 4:14 AM | Updated: 10:42 am
With Bob Ferguson departing his post after more than a decade, Democrat Nick Brown, the former U.S. Attorney for Western Washington, will become Washington’s next attorney general, according to The Associated Press.
With more than 2.5 million votes cast, Brown is ahead with 56.26% of the vote, the numbers from the state reported. His opponent, Republican Pete Serrano, the former mayor of Pasco is trailing with 43.66% of the vote.
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Brown was in the Army before returning home to Washington to work as a prosecutor. He was then appointed as general counsel for Gov. Jay Inslee, according to his website.
In 2021, President Joe Biden nominated Brown to become the U.S. Attorney for Western Washington.
According to Ballotpedia, $2.2 million was raised for Brown ($2.1 million was allegedly spent), compared to Serrano who was dwarfed in terms of financial contributions. Serrano raised $460,624 (and spent approximately $383,813) from Jan. 1, 2023 to Oct. 15, as reported by Ballotpedia.
Brown stated on the campaign trail that he wouldn’t hesitate to file lawsuits if needed to protect abortion access in Washington, according to Axios. He also maintained support for the state’s gun control laws, including the ban on selling semi-automatic rifles.
Serrano was a former environmental attorney for the U.S. Department of Energy, working as a lawyer on projects during the Hanford Nuclear Reservation clean-up, and worked on the Pasco City Council before becoming the mayor of Pasco.
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State Sen. Manka Dhingra failed to advance out of the primary held during the summer after receiving just 22% of the vote.
The Washington Attorney General’s Office is the largest law firm in the state with approximately 1,700 employees, including 727 attorneys, across 13 offices, according to Cascade PBS. The office has an annual budget of $350 million.
Editors’ note: This story originally was published on Tuesday, Nov. 5. It has been updated and republished since then.
Contributing: Julia Dallas, MyNorthwest
Frank Sumrall is a content editor at MyNorthwest. You can read his stories here and you can email him here.
