Patty Murray

Patricia Lynn Murray (née Johns; born October 11, 1950) is an American politician serving as the senior United States senator from Washington, a seat she has held since 1993. From 2023 to 2025, she held the position of president pro tempore of the United States Senate, becoming the first woman to hold the position. Prior to serving in the U.S. Senate, she served in the Washington State Senate from 1989 to 1993. She is a member of the Democratic Party. Born and raised in Bothell, Washington, Murray graduated from Washington State University with a degree in physical education. She worked as a preschool teacher and later as a parenting teacher at Shoreline Community College. An advocate for environmental and education issues, Murray was elected to serve on her local school board in King County. One of her early elected political mentors was Donn Charnley. In 1988, she was elected to the Washington State Senate, defeating two-term incumbent Bill Kiskaddon, and served one term before being elected to the U.S. Senate in 1992. She has been re-elected five times, most recently in 2022. As a senator, Murray has been in party leadership since 2001, having served as chair of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, Democratic Conference secretary, and assistant Democratic leader. Throughout her tenure, she has chaired the Senate Appropriations Committee, Veterans' Affairs Committee, the Budget Committee, and the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee. Murray drew national attention for her work in negotiating the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 with Republican congressman Paul Ryan. Murray is currently the third-most senior U.S. senator, the most senior Senate Democrat, the longest-serving female senator upon Dianne Feinstein's death in 2023, and the dean of Washington's congressional delegation since 2017 upon Representative Jim McDermott's retirement.