Katie Young (Washington)

This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.

Katie Young

Democratic Party

Elections and appointments

Last election

November 3, 2020

Education

Bachelor's

New York University, 2012

Personal

Birthplace

Sumner, Wash.

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Twitter

Katie Young (Democratic Party) ran for election to the Washington House of Representatives to represent District 31-Position 1. She lost in the general election on November 3, 2020.

Young completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Katie Young was born in Sumner, Washington. She obtained a bachelor's degree from New York University in 2012.

Elections

2020

See also: Washington House of Representatives elections, 2020

General election

General election for Washington House of Representatives District 31-Position 1

Incumbent Drew Stokesbary defeated Katie Young in the general election for Washington House of Representatives District 31-Position 1 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Drew Stokesbary (R)	63.2	54,517
		Katie Young (D)	36.7	31,606
		Other/Write-in votes	0.1	89

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 86,212
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for Washington House of Representatives District 31-Position 1

Incumbent Drew Stokesbary and Katie Young defeated Zach Stover in the primary for Washington House of Representatives District 31-Position 1 on August 4, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Drew Stokesbary (R)	63.1	32,702
✔		Katie Young (D)	32.3	16,765
	Submit photo	Zach Stover (Unaffiliated)	4.5	2,321
		Other/Write-in votes	0.1	55

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 51,843
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Endorsements

To view Young's endorsements in the 2020 election, please click here.

Campaign themes

2020

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Katie Young completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Young's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

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Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

Katie earned a bachelor's degree from New York University's Gallatin School of Individualized Study in 2012. Professionally, she works as as freelance Stage Manager and theatrical Director. As a member of Actors' Equity Association, the union representing professional stage managers and directors, Katie serves on the Stage Manager and Member Education committees. She was selected to be a member of the prestigious Lincoln Center Theater's Directors Lab which brings together directors from around the world under a particular theme - in this case, collaboration. Katie's greatest personal passion is horsemanship and she has been an avid rider for over 20 years. She has fostered over 20 dogs for The Sato Project, which works to aid the dogs of Puerto Rico.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• I believe healthcare is a human right and will fight to bring universal healthcare to Washington State.
• It is imperative that we take swift and decisive action to mitigate the Climate Crisis. One part of this is implementing a carbon tax and using that revenue to invest in a green energy economy.
• We must fully fund our public schools in every zip code and refuse to cut critical programs like special education as a bandaid - I believe that the way to do this is through progressive tax reform to ease the burden on our working people while stabilizing our school funding.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I'm really passionate about bringing equity into our policymaking. Issues of equity are incredibly intersectional, making it hard to address effectively from any one issue. We must examine and correct disparities in our current policy, whether it's how we distribute education funding or who's bearing the burden of our taxes, as well as interrogate new policy to ensure it's effectively serving our residents across communities and identity lines.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

First and foremost our leaders should welcome accountability and transparency. Our work is to serve the needs and interests of our constituents and our office should not distract us from that fact.

I believe empathy is invaluable in our elected leaders. We are making laws that have very real, tangible effects on the lives of our constituents. The need for those laws can often come from a place of pain, hardship, loss or failure. Our leaders cannot forget the very real place from which our policies are born. It is from that place that I draw my passion and dedication to fight for policy that improves the lives of Washingtonians.

We also need our legislators to be effective. We must collaborate with community leaders and other legislators to craft policy that is designed to create solutions. But the real world has a lot of variables and we also must be willing to change policy when it doesn't result in the outcomes we expected.

What legacy would you like to leave?

When I think about my work in the arts as well as the policies I'm passionate about fighting for in the legislature, both paths circle back to community. I truly believe that community is critical to our existence as humans and I hope that I am building a legacy that invests in communities. Because, the magical thing about a community is that investing your time, your heart and your soul is just as valuable if not more so than investing money. Whether it's sharing that cup of flour with your neighbor or ensuring that everyone has access to healthcare, communities support each other because we're stronger together. I hope my legacy is one of building communities that become stronger, more resilient, and more committed to their fellow people.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

My very first job was working in my parent's teddy bear shop, Golden Rule Bears, in downtown Sumner. The bus would drop me off at the shop after school and I would work around the store to earn credit to buy bears. It was a dream gig as a kid! My time at Golden Rule Bears was truly fundamental in shaping me as a person. I had incredible role models in my parents. My dad was an excellent salesman because he took the time to get to know all of his customers personally. He was the glue that held a community together. My mom managed the finances of an entire business by herself, supporting several staff members including our entire family of 5. When I wasn't working the shop I would venture to one of the other small businesses - the local cafe, the antique mall, the bookstore. It was a magical way to grow up.

My time at Golden Rule Bears is the most concrete evidence I have for the value of small businesses to our society. There's the economic factors that small business support people with livelihoods, sure, but by virtue of being small they also are incredible community builders. They give us a place to share our passions and interests, to learn, and be supported by our neighbors. The passion, hard work, and dedication put in by small business owners and their staff are the soul points that get invested into our communities. My beanie baby collection may be valueless, but what I learned working at Golden Rule Bears will always be invaluable.

What is your favorite book? Why?

Nerd alert! I love A Problem From Hell by Samantha Power. This is a book about genocide - maybe not the answer Ballotpedia was looking for from a question in their "Culture and Fun" section. But the reason I love this book so much is because of the way Power describes Raphael Lemkin. Lemkin was the man responsible for coining the word "genocide" and he worked tireless to have it recognized by the United Nations and political leaders. She paints a picture of a man who is obsessed, consumed, with his singular mission and the less-than-enthusiastic response from those around him when trapped in hallways with him. He was a man who had seen injustice in the world and wouldn't quit until he completed is part of the path to justice. Power does a phenomenal job of brining him back to life in this book, which is why it remains my favorite.

If you'd rather my favorite non-genocide related book (hold please while I scroll down the list a few numbers....) That would be The Pleasure of My Company by Steve Martin.

Do you believe that it’s beneficial for state legislators to have previous experience in government or politics?

I believe that we need representatives that span industries and lived experiences to ensure that our government is working for its people. Experience can be valuable, sure, but policies and procedures can be learned, relationships can be built. The perspectives offered from a diverse representation of our people is not something that can be effectively learned or built.

Do you believe it’s beneficial to build relationships with other legislators? Please explain your answer.

No one single legislator can generate and pass policy alone, so our relationships with other legislators is extremely important. The laws our legislature passes typically affect multiple districts, so our ability to collaborate with our colleagues in designing those bills is critical to ensuring that the interests and priorities of our district is also represented.

If you are not a current legislator, are there certain committees that you would want to be a part of?

Environment & Energy to address the climate crisis and continue investing in Washington's green energy future and correcting pollution in our communities.

Finance to start fixing Washington's regressive tax code which places an undue burden on our low and middle-income people while still failing to adequately fund the state. We need to close loopholes that allow corporations to evade taxes and implement things like a capital gains tax.

Health Care & Wellness because healthcare is a human right and I will fight to make healthcare accessible to all while keeping prescription drug and insurance companies in check.

Labor & Workplace Standards - as a proud union member I know just how critical collective bargaining is to ensuring workers have access to a safe workplace and fair compensation. One policy I would fight for through the Labor and Workplace Standards Committee is to prevent the misclassification of employees as Independent Contractors prevent paying proper salaries and benefits.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

See also

2020 Elections

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External links

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Footnotes

[show]

Current members of the Washington House of Representatives

Leadership

Speaker of the House:Laurie Jinkins

Majority Leader:Joe Fitzgibbon

Minority Leader:Drew Stokesbary

Representatives

District 1-Position 1

Davina Duerr (D)

District 1-Position 2

Shelley Kloba (D)

District 2-Position 1

Andrew Barkis (R)

District 2-Position 2

Matt Marshall (R)

District 3-Position 1

Natasha Hill (D)

District 3-Position 2

Timm Ormsby (D)

District 4-Position 1

Suzanne Schmidt (R)

District 4-Position 2

Rob Chase (R)

District 5-Position 1

Zach Hall (D)

District 5-Position 2

Lisa Callan (D)

District 6-Position 1

Mike Volz (R)

District 6-Position 2

Jenny Graham (R)

District 7-Position 1

David Engell (R)

District 7-Position 2

Hunter Abell (R)

District 8-Position 1

Stephanie Barnard (R)

District 8-Position 2

April Connors (R)

District 9-Position 1

Mary Dye (R)

District 9-Position 2

Joe Schmick (R)

District 10-Position 1

Clyde Shavers (D)

District 10-Position 2

Dave Paul (D)

District 11-Position 1

David Hackney (D)

District 11-Position 2

Steve Bergquist (D)

District 12-Position 1

Brian Burnett (R)

District 12-Position 2

Mike Steele (R)

District 13-Position 1

Tom Dent (R)

District 13-Position 2

Alex Ybarra (R)

District 14-Position 1

Gloria Mendoza (R)

District 14-Position 2

Deb Manjarrez (R)

District 15-Position 1

Chris Corry (R)

District 15-Position 2

Jeremie Dufault (R)

District 16-Position 1

Mark Klicker (R)

District 16-Position 2

Skyler Rude (R)

District 17-Position 1

Kevin Waters (R)

District 17-Position 2

David Stuebe (R)

District 18-Position 1

Stephanie McClintock (R)

District 18-Position 2

John Ley (R)

District 19-Position 1

Jim Walsh (R)

District 19-Position 2

Joel McEntire (R)

District 20-Position 1

Peter Abbarno (R)

District 20-Position 2

Ed Orcutt (R)

District 21-Position 1

Strom Peterson (D)

District 21-Position 2

Lillian Ortiz-Self (D)

District 22-Position 1

Beth Doglio (D)

District 22-Position 2

Lisa Parshley (D)

District 23-Position 1

Tarra Simmons (D)

District 23-Position 2

Greg Nance (D)

District 24-Position 1

Adam Bernbaum (D)

District 24-Position 2

Steve Tharinger (D)

District 25-Position 1

Michael Keaton (R)

District 25-Position 2

Cyndy Jacobsen (R)

District 26-Position 1

Adison Richards (D)

District 26-Position 2

Michelle Caldier (R)

District 27-Position 1

Laurie Jinkins (D)

District 27-Position 2

Jake Fey (D)

District 28-Position 1

Mari Leavitt (D)

District 28-Position 2

Dan Bronoske (D)

District 29-Position 1

Melanie Morgan (D)

District 29-Position 2

Sharlett Mena (D)

District 30-Position 1

Jamila Taylor (D)

District 30-Position 2

Kristine Reeves (D)

District 31-Position 1

Drew Stokesbary (R)

District 31-Position 2

Josh Penner (R)

District 32-Position 1

Cindy Ryu (D)

District 32-Position 2

Lauren Davis (D)

District 33-Position 1

Edwin Obras (D)

District 33-Position 2

Mia Gregerson (D)

District 34-Position 1

Brianna Thomas (D)

District 34-Position 2

Joe Fitzgibbon (D)

District 35-Position 1

Dan Griffey (R)

District 35-Position 2

Travis Couture (R)

District 36-Position 1

Julia Reed (D)

District 36-Position 2

Liz Berry (D)

District 37-Position 1

Sharon Santos (D)

District 37-Position 2

Chipalo Street (D)

District 38-Position 1

Julio Cortes (D)

District 38-Position 2

Mary Fosse (D)

District 39-Position 1

Sam Low (R)

District 39-Position 2

Carolyn Eslick (R)

District 40-Position 1

Debra Lekanoff (D)

District 40-Position 2

Alex Ramel (D)

District 41-Position 1

Janice Zahn (D)

District 41-Position 2

My-Linh Thai (D)

District 42-Position 1

Alicia Rule (D)

District 42-Position 2

Joe Timmons (D)

District 43-Position 1

Nicole Macri (D)

District 43-Position 2

Shaun Scott (D)

District 44-Position 1

Brandy Donaghy (D)

District 44-Position 2

April Berg (D)

District 45-Position 1

Roger Goodman (D)

District 45-Position 2

Larry Springer (D)

District 46-Position 1

Gerry Pollet (D)

District 46-Position 2

Darya Farivar (D)

District 47-Position 1

Debra Entenman (D)

District 47-Position 2

Chris Stearns (D)

District 48-Position 1

Osman Salahuddin (D)

District 48-Position 2

Amy Walen (D)

District 49-Position 1

Sharon Wylie (D)

District 49-Position 2

Monica Stonier (D)

Democratic Party (59)

Republican Party (39)