Ann Rivers (Washington)
Ann Rivers (Republican Party) was a member of the Washington State Senate, representing District 18. She assumed office in 2012. She left office on January 13, 2025.
Rivers (Republican Party) ran for re-election to the Washington State Senate to represent District 18. She won in the general election on November 3, 2020.
Biography
Rivers earned a bachelor's degree in political science and a Secondary Education Teaching Certificate from Central Michigan University. Her professional experience includes serving as the president of a governmental and public affairs consulting firm.
Committee assignments
Note: This membership information was last updated in September 2023. Ballotpedia completes biannual updates of committee membership. If you would like to send us an update, email us at: editor@ballotpedia.org.
2023-2024
Rivers was assigned to the following committees:
- Health & Long Term Care Committee
- Housing Committee
- Senate Rules Committee
- Ways & Means Committee
- Audit Review and Oversight Committee (Decommissioned)
- Joint Oregon-Washington Legislative Action Committee
- Economic Development & International Relations Committee
2021-2022
Rivers was assigned to the following committees:
- Health & Long Term Care Committee
- Ways & Means Committee
- Senate Rules Committee
- Joint Oregon-Washington Legislative Action Committee
- Economic Development & International Relations Committee
2019-2020
Rivers was assigned to the following committees:
- Environment, Energy & Technology Committee
- Health & Long Term Care Committee
- Senate Rules Committee
- Ways & Means Committee
2017 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:
| Washington committee assignments, 2017 |
|---|
| • Early Learning & K-12 Education |
| • Health Care, Chair |
| • Rules |
| • Ways & Means |
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Rivers served on the following committees:
| Washington committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Early Learning & K-12 Education |
| • Health Care |
| • Rules |
| • Transportation |
2013-2014
In the 2013-2014 legislative session, Rivers served on the following committees:
| Washington committee assignments, 2013 |
|---|
| • Early Learning & K-12 Education |
| • Energy, Environment & Telecommunications |
| • Governmental Operations |
| • Rules |
| • Ways & Means |
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Rivers served on the following committees:
| Washington committee assignments, 2011 |
|---|
| • Business and Financial Services |
| • Judiciary |
| • Rules |
| • Transportation |
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2024
- See also: Washington State Senate elections, 2024
Ann Rivers did not file to run for re-election.
2020
- See also: Washington State Senate elections, 2020
General election
General election for Washington State Senate District 18
Incumbent Ann Rivers defeated Rick Bell in the general election for Washington State Senate District 18 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Ann Rivers (R) | 56.3 | 53,269 |
| Rick Bell (D) | 40.5 | 38,305 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 3.2 | 3,041 | ||
| Total votes: 94,615 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Washington State Senate District 18
Rick Bell and incumbent Ann Rivers defeated John Ley in the primary for Washington State Senate District 18 on August 4, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Rick Bell (D) | 38.5 | 21,798 | |
| ✔ | | Ann Rivers (R) | 32.5 | 18,401 |
 | John Ley (R) | 28.9 | 16,342 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.1 | 54 | ||
| Total votes: 56,595 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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2016
- See also: Washington State Senate elections, 2016
Elections for the Washington State Senate took place in 2016. The primary election was held on August 2, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was May 20, 2016.
Incumbent Ann Rivers defeated Eric Holt in the Washington State Senate District 18 general election.[1]
| Washington State Senate, District 18 General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  [[Ann Rivers]] Incumbent |
63.81% | 45,316 | |
| Democratic | Eric Holt | 36.19% | 25,699 | |
| Total Votes | 71,015 | |||
| Source: Washington Secretary of State | ||||
Eric Holt and incumbent Ann Rivers were unopposed in the Washington State Senate District 18 top two primary.[2][3]
| Washington State Senate, District 18 Top Two Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Democratic | Eric Holt | |
| Republican | [[Ann Rivers]] Incumbent | |
| Source: Washington Secretary of State | ||
2012
- See also: Washington State Senate elections, 2012
Rivers won election in the 2012 election for Washington State Senate, District 18. Rivers was unopposed in the August 7 blanket primary election and defeated Ralph Schmidt (D) in the general election, which took place on November 6, 2012.[4][5]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Ann Rivers Incumbent |
67.9% | 42,924 | |
| Democratic | Ralph Schmidt | 32.1% | 20,330 | |
| Total Votes | 63,254 | |||
2010
Ann Rivers was elected to the Washington House of Representatives District 18-Position 1. She defeated Jon Russell, Brandon Vick, John T. Haugen, Richard Carson and Anthony Bittner in the August 17, 2010, primary. She defeated Democrat Dennis Kampe in the November 2, 2010, general election.
| Washington House of Representatives, District 18-Position 1 General Election (2010) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| Ann Rivers (R)
|
37.317 | |||
| Dennis Kampe (D) | 24,717 | |||
| Washington House of Representatives, District 18-Position 1 Primary (2010) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | Percent | ||
| Dennis Kampe (D)
|
10,991 | 31.92% | ||
| Ann Rivers (R)
|
9,359 | 27.18% | ||
| Jon Russell (R) | 7,718 | 22.41% | ||
| Jon T. Haugen | 2,333 | 6.78% | ||
| Brandon Vick (R) | 2,033 | 5.90% | ||
| Richard Carson (I) | 1,424 | 4.14% | ||
| Anthony Bittner (R) | 575 | 1.67% | ||
Campaign themes
2016
Rivers' campaign website highlighted the following issues:
| “ |
Jobs The Rivers Business Plan: Measured Incentives
Regulation
Permitting
Accountability
Schools After decades of pillaging our education budgets to pay for non-essential government services, the state is turning the corner but the future is still uncertain. I helped lead the successful charge for an additional $2.6 billion in school funding in the most recent budget efforts all while reducing tuition at our community colleges and universities for the first time in the history of the United States. All of this without raising taxes. I serve on the Governor’s Task Force to address the comprehensive solution to meet the paramount duty of our state and remain fully committed to building on the work we have completed so far. Some in Olympia would like to leverage funding for schools with new taxes. But holding back on funding education unless there are massive tax increases is not only bad for education, it’s unconstitutional. Kids deserve our first dollar, not budgetary leftovers.[6] |
” |
| —Ann Rivers[7] | ||
2012
Rivers' website highlighted the following campaign themes:[8]
Jobs and the Economy
- Excerpt: "Provide business with undeniable reasons to want to come here to set up shop or expand current operations. That way, we can put people back to work and get our economy moving again."
Reality Budgeting (Living Within Our Means)
- Excerpt: "First, prioritize the needs. Second, require that each Agency should be required to justify their budgetary requests every year instead of engaging in the increasingly out-of-touch practice of cost plus without proving the need."
Transportation that Works for Us
- Excerpt: "I believe in the concept that every dime of taxpayer money (meaning every dollar of revenue from whatever the source) should be squeezed until it screams. I will not support an increase in the gas tax. I will not support increases in tab fees. The people have spoken and I have listened."
Public Safety and Education
- Excerpt: "Public Safety and Education are government’s most important functions. As a state we should provide our public safety personnel with the best equipment and training to make them more effective."
Smaller, More Efficient and More Effective Government
- Excerpt: "The bigger the government, the greater the intrusion, regulation and cost. To guard against that, especially during difficult economic times government must be cut to the bone and then we need to look for scraps. People are hurting, and government must share the pain."
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Endorsements
Presidential preference
2012
Ann Rivers (Washington) endorsed Mitt Romney in the 2012 presidential election.[9]
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Washington scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2024
In 2024, the Washington State Legislature was in session from January 8 to March 7.
- Legislators are scored based on their votes on legislation supported by the organization.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to the state’s business community.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to home building industry issues.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.
- Legislators are scored on how they voted on firearm policies.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues.
- Legislators are scored on whether they voted for or against WSLC's position.
2023
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2023, click [show]. |
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In 2023, the Washington State Legislature was in session from January 9 to April 23.
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2022
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2022, click [show]. |
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In 2022, the Washington State Legislature was in session from January 10 to March 10.
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2021
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2021, click [show]. |
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In 2021, the Washington State Legislature was in session from January 11 to April 25.
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2020
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2020, click [show]. |
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In 2020, the Washington State Legislature was in session from January 13 to March 12.
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2019
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show]. |
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In 2019, the Washington State Legislature was in session from January 14 through April 28.
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2018
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show]. |
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In 2018, the Washington State Legislature, second session, was in session from January 8 through March 8.
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2017
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show]. |
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In 2017, the Washington State Legislature, first session, was in session from January 9 through April 23. There were also special sessions. The first special session was April 24 through May 23. The second special session was May 23 through June 21. The third special session was June 21 through July 20.
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2016
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show]. |
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In 2016, the 64th Washington State Legislature, second session, was in session from January 11 through March 10. The legislature held a special session from March 11 to March 29 to pass a supplemental budget.
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2015
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show]. |
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In 2015, the 64th Washington State Legislature, first session, was in session from January 12 through April 24. The legislature was in special session from April 29 to May 28, May 29 to June 27 and June 28 to July 10.[10]
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2014
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2014, click [show]. |
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In 2014, the 63rd Washington State Legislature, second session, was in session from January 13 to March 14.[11]
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2013
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show]. |
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In 2013, the 63rd Washington State Legislature, first session, was in session from January 14 to April 29.
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2012
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2012, click [show]. |
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In 2012, the 62nd Washington State Legislature, second session, was in session from January 9 to March 8.[12]
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Missed Votes Report
- See also: Washington House of Representatives and Washington State Senate
In March 2014, Washington Votes, a legislative information website, released its annual Missed Votes Report, which provides detailed missed roll call votes on bills for every state legislator during the 2014 legislative session.[13] The 2014 regular session included a total of 515 votes in the State House and 396 in the State Senate, as well as 1,372 bills introduced total in the legislature and 237 bills passed. Out of all roll call votes, 90 individual legislators did not miss any votes. Three individual legislators missed more than 50 votes.[13] Rivers missed 2 votes in a total of 1017 roll calls.
Freedom Foundation
The Freedom Foundation releases its Big Spender List annually. The Institute ranks all Washington legislators based on their total proposed tax and fee increases. To find each legislator’s total, the Institute adds up the 10-year tax increases or decreases, as estimated by Washington’s Office of Financial Management, of all bills sponsored or co-sponsored by that legislator.[14]
2012
Rivers proposed a 10-year increase in state taxes and fees of $72.7 million, the 60th highest amount of proposed new taxes and fees of the 93 Washington state representatives on the Freedom Foundation’s 2012 Big Spender List.
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Rivers lives in La Center with her husband, Fred. They have two sons.
See also
2020 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Washington Secretary of State, "General Election Results 2016," accessed December 2, 2016
- ↑ Washington Secretary of State, "2016 Candidates Who Have Filed," accessed May 23, 2016
- ↑ Washington Secretary of State, "August 2, 2016 Primary Results," accessed August 25, 2016
- ↑ C-SPAN, "AP Election Results - Washington State Senate," accessed August 7, 2012
- ↑ Washington Secretary of State, "2012 Primary Candidates," accessed April 10, 2014
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Ann Rivers, "Issues," accessed October 3, 2016
- ↑ annrivers, "Official Campaign Website," accessed April 10, 2014
- ↑ Mitt Romney for President, "Mitt Romney Announces Support of Washington State Elected Officials and Leaders," February 13, 2012
- ↑ Multi State, "2015 State Legislative Session Dates," accessed July 13, 2015
- ↑ StateScape, "Session schedules," accessed July 23, 2014
- ↑ StateScape, "Session schedules," accessed July 23, 2014
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Washington Policy Center, "2014 Missed Votes Report for Legislators Released," March 18, 2014
- ↑ Freedom Foundation, "2012 Big Spender List," accessed April 10, 2014
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
Washington State Senate District 18 2012-2025 |
Succeeded by Adrian Cortes (D) |
| Preceded by - |
Washington House of Representatives District 18-Position 1 2011-2012 |
Succeeded by - |
