The Fight for Representation: Washington's Impending Reapportionment
As the state prepares for an extra legislative session, smaller counties brace for a battle against the growing influence of the urban Puget Sound.
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As the time for the extra session of the legislature approaches, the question of reapportionment assumes more and more prominence in the talk of politicians and the people generally. The constitution declares that the number of senators shall not be more than one-half nor less than one-third of the number of members of the house. Last year’s legislature was composed of seventy representatives and thirty-five senators. With the population of the state now reaching 339,282, there is common talk of a combination between the east-of-the-mountain counties and the smaller ones all over the state to make terms with the Sound counties, especially Pierce and King, to prevent representation from being based strictly on population, which would give the Sound a preponderating influence in legislation.
“They will strain every nerve to hold their power and they now claim that they have enough voters to carry their point.”
The struggle for power between rural Washington and the growing urban centers like Seattle and Tacoma is a foundational tension in the state’s political history. This 1890 debate mirrors the modern tension between Yakima County’s agricultural interests and the legislative dominance of the I-5 corridor.
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