Washington State Legislature

The Washington State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Washington. It is a bipartisan, bicameral body, composed of the lower Washington House of Representatives, composed of 98 Representatives, and the upper Washington State Senate, with 49 Senators plus the Lieutenant Governor acting as President. The state is divided into 49 legislative districts, each of which elect one senator and two representatives. HISTORY "Washington Territory was created in 1853. It was carved out of the Oregon territory and consisted originally of all of what is now Washington and part of Idaho and Montana. President Franklin Pierce appointed Isaac I. Stevens, first territorial governor and he, upon arrival in the territory, called for elections to the legislative assembly which was to consist of a nine-member Council and an eighteen-member House." -- History of the Washington Legislature, by Don Brazier On November 11, 1889 President Benjamin Harrison approved the Constitution and issued a proclamation declaring Washington a state. U.S. Secretary of State James Blaine sent a telegram to Miles Moore, the last territorial governor of Washington stating: "The President signed the proclamation declaring Washington to be a state in the Union at 5:00 and twenty-seven minutes this afternoon. "