Marilyn Strickland

Marilyn Strickland (Democratic Party) is a member of the U.S. House, representing Washington's 10th Congressional District. She assumed office on January 3, 2021. Her current term ends on January 3, 2027.

Strickland (Democratic Party) is running for re-election to the U.S. House to represent Washington's 10th Congressional District. She declared candidacy for the primary scheduled on August 4, 2026.^[source]

Strickland was mayor of Tacoma from 2010 to 2017. She was on the Tacoma City Council from 2008 to 2009.

Biography

Marilyn Strickland was born in Seoul, South Korea, and lives in Tacoma, Washington.^[1]^[2] Strickland earned a bachelor's degree in sociology from the University of Washington and a master's degree in business administration from Clark-Atlanta University.^[1]^[2]^[3] She served as the campaign chair of the United Way of Pierce County; as a trustee of the Tacoma Public Library and Annie Wright Schools; a board member of Grand Cinema; and a member of The Black Collective and the International Women's Forum.^[3]

Committee assignments

U.S. House

2025-2026

Strickland was assigned to the following committees:^[Source]

2023-2024

Strickland was assigned to the following committees:^[Source]

2021-2022

Strickland was assigned to the following committees:^[Source]

Elections

2026

General election

The primary will occur on August 4, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for U.S. House Washington District 10

Incumbent Marilyn Strickland and Adam Arafat are running in the primary for U.S. House Washington District 10 on August 4, 2026.

		Candidate
		Marilyn Strickland (D)
		Adam Arafat (D)

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
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Endorsements

Ballotpedia is gathering information about candidate endorsements. To send us an endorsement, click here.

2024

Washington's 10th Congressional District election, 2024 (August 6 top-two primary)

General election

General election for U.S. House Washington District 10

Incumbent Marilyn Strickland defeated Don Hewett in the general election for U.S. House Washington District 10 on November 5, 2024.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Marilyn Strickland (D)	58.5	203,732
	Don Hewett (R)	41.2	143,492
	Other/Write-in votes	0.2	820

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 348,044
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for U.S. House Washington District 10

The following candidates ran in the primary for U.S. House Washington District 10 on August 6, 2024.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Marilyn Strickland (D)	54.3	93,942
✔	Don Hewett (R)	26.7	46,258
	Nirav Sheth (R)	11.7	20,208
	Desirée Toliver (D)	3.7	6,424
	Eric Mahaffy (D)	2.0	3,527
	Richard Boyce (Congress Sucks Party)	1.2	2,056
	Kurtis Engle (Union Party)	0.3	545
	Other/Write-in votes	0.1	192

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 173,152
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Jay Fratt (R)
Edward Saner (D)

Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Strickland in this election.

2022

General election

General election for U.S. House Washington District 10

Incumbent Marilyn Strickland defeated Keith Swank in the general election for U.S. House Washington District 10 on November 8, 2022.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Marilyn Strickland (D)	57.0	152,544
	Keith Swank (R)	42.9	114,777
	Other/Write-in votes	0.2	427

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 267,748
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for U.S. House Washington District 10

Incumbent Marilyn Strickland and Keith Swank defeated Dan Gordon, Eric Mahaffy, and Richard Boyce in the primary for U.S. House Washington District 10 on August 2, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Marilyn Strickland (D)	55.3	90,093
✔		Keith Swank (R)	33.9	55,231
	Submit photo	Dan Gordon (R)	6.3	10,315
		Eric Mahaffy (D)	2.3	3,710
		Richard Boyce (Congress Sucks Party)	2.0	3,250
		Other/Write-in votes	0.1	189

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 162,788
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Don Hewett (R)

2020

General election

General election for U.S. House Washington District 10

Marilyn Strickland defeated Beth Doglio in the general election for U.S. House Washington District 10 on November 3, 2020.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Marilyn Strickland (D)	49.3	167,937
	Beth Doglio (D)	35.6	121,040
	Other/Write-in votes	15.1	51,430

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 340,407
= 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 U.S. House Washington District 10

The following candidates ran in the primary for U.S. House Washington District 10 on August 4, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Marilyn Strickland (D)	20.3	45,988
✔		Beth Doglio (D)	15.2	34,254
		Kristine Reeves (D)	12.9	29,236
		Rian Ingrim (R)	11.4	25,688
		Jackson Maynard (R)	8.2	18,526
		Dean Johnson (R)	7.4	16,700
		Nancy Slotnick (R)	6.7	15,201
		Don Hewett (R)	4.8	10,750
		Phil Gardner (D)	2.3	5,292
		Ryan Tate (R)	1.9	4,196
		Mary Bacon (D)	1.8	3,992
		Todd Buckley (Independent)	1.6	3,552
		Eric LeMay (D)	1.4	3,072
		Joshua Collins (Essential Workers Party)	1.2	2,667
		Richard Boyce (Congress Sucks Party)	1.0	2,302
	Submit photo	Ralph Johnson (R)	0.6	1,441
	Submit photo	Gordon Allen Pross (R)	0.5	1,186
	Submit photo	Sam Wright (D)	0.5	1,129
	Submit photo	Randy Bell (D)	0.2	563
		Other/Write-in votes	0.1	267

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 226,002
= 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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Watch the Candidate Conversation for this race!

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Dan Gordon (R)

Endorsements

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

Campaign themes

2026

Ballotpedia survey responses

Marilyn Strickland has not yet completed Ballotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey. Send a message to Marilyn Strickland asking her to fill out the survey. If you are Marilyn Strickland, click here to fill out Ballotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey.

Who fills out Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey?

Any candidate running for elected office, at any level, can complete Ballotpedia's Candidate Survey. Completing the survey will update the candidate's Ballotpedia profile, letting voters know who they are and what they stand for. More than 22,000 candidates have taken Ballotpedia's candidate survey since we launched it in 2015. Learn more about the survey here.

You can ask Marilyn Strickland to fill out this survey by using the buttons below or emailing info@stricklandforwashington.com.

2024

Marilyn Strickland did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.

2022

Marilyn Strickland did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

2020

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

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I was born in Seoul, South Korea. My father, who fought in two wars, met my mother while he was stationed in Korea. If elected, I will be the first African-American to represent Washington state at the federal level, and the first Korean-American woman ever elected to Congress.

My parents wanted me to have opportunities they were denied and taught me to work hard, stay true to my values, serve the community, and to stand up for the underdog. Those values inspire me today.

As the two-term Mayor of Tacoma, I helped transform a city and economy crippled by a deep recession. I led successful efforts to raise the minimum wage and pass paid sick leave. I helped create thousands of electric vehicle charging stations and raised solar energy use by 26%. We raised the high school graduation rate in Tacoma from 55% to 89% by making education a civic priority. I was proud to endorse and support the statewide initiative requiring police deescalation training, and stood with the LGBTQ community in support of Marriage Equality and transgender rights, and pass universal background checks for gun sales in Tacoma.

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 grew up in Pierce County, have deep community connections and a proven track record of working with others to get things done. From passing a minimum wage increase and universal paid sick leave to investing in local infrastructure and small businesses, I have experience building coalitions to improve our communities.
I will fight for progressive policies in Congress, from universal health care to green energy investments to housing for all.
My election will make history - I will be the first African-American to represent Washington state in Congress and the first Korean-American woman in the country.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Healthcare, housing, climate change, and building an inclusive economy.

Health care is a right, not a privilege. I strongly support universal coverage, starting with adding a public health care option to the Affordable Care Act, lowering the Medicare eligibility age, and increasing the age for children to stay on their parents' insurance.

Everyone deserves the right to a safe, healthy home they can afford. The federal government must put more resources into building housing. We need a response to the housing crisis that matches the scale of the problem. I will champion this effort in Congress.

Climate change is a public health issue, a national security issue, and an equity issue. I will work to invest in renewable energy in pursuit of a carbon-free future, rebuild the EPA focusing particularly on equity impacts, and reinstate regulations on emissions and protections for our public lands.

For too long, structural barriers and inequality have kept financial security out of reach for millions of hard working people. I support paid family leave, and Universal Basic Income pilot programs to help ensure everyone's basic needs are met.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

My experience working with a broad coalition of people to get things done as Mayor would serve me well in Congress. Successful legislating is about finding areas of common ground across the political spectrum and societal landscape and coming together to pass a mutually beneficial law. I have made a career of working with others to get things done - as Mayor, I worked with small businesses in Tacoma to pass a minimum wage increase and universal paid sick leave that wouldn't drive them out of business. Working with business and labor, I led investment of $500 million of infrastructure spending in our roads, bridges, transit systems, and utilities. As CEO of the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, I successfully lobbied to add an equity focus to our mission statement and convinced the Chamber to stand shoulder to shoulder with the Washington State AFL-CIO and endorse the Washington State Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Act, to increase opportunities for minority-owned businesses to earn government contracts. I launched a program pairing landlords with vacant apartments with people who are homeless, and paired them with social services to help ensure their basic needs were met.

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

A Congressperson's core responsibilities are to represent the needs of the communities they serve and fight to improve lives through ensuring that everyone's basic needs are met and that they have the opportunity to reach their potential. That is the job of government, and that is what I will do in Congress.

Do you believe that it's beneficial for representatives to have previous experience in government or politics?

Yes. As a proven leader in government, I have shown that I can work with others to get things done. Governing is about working with people from a variety of sectors and with differing viewpoints to achieve a common goal. When I was Mayor of Tacoma, we raised the minimum wage, passed paid family leave, passed the biggest infrastructure package in nearly 50 years, and raised the graduation rate from 55% to 89% through collaboration and working together.

Moreover, it is critical that we elect more local leaders - those who have been on the ground with the people they represent - to Congress. I am the only candidate in my race with local government experience, and I have seen first-hand how the policies we implement affect the people we represent. I will bring that perspective to DC.

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

My top committee choices are Appropriations or Ways and Means, because I want to deliver funding for the 10th Congressional District, for Washington, and for our country. The Transportation and Infrastructure Committee is of interest to me because these are significant needs in the 10th District and the Puget Sound Region. I am also interested in the House Financial Services Committee , because that is the committee with jurisdiction over housing matters, and Veterans Affairs to help care for the many veterans in the 10th.

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.

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.

Marilyn Strickland campaign contribution history
Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2026*	U.S. House Washington District 10	Candidacy Declared primary	$470,273	$366,433
2024*	U.S. House Washington District 10	Won general	$2,067,308	$1,944,673
2022	U.S. House Washington District 10	Won general	$1,911,260	$1,485,333
2020	U.S. House Washington District 10	Won general	$1,834,688	$1,802,662
Grand total			$6,283,529	$5,599,101
Sources: OpenSecrets, Federal Elections Commission *This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* Data from this year may not be complete

Notable endorsements

See also: Ballotpedia: Our approach to covering endorsements

This section displays endorsements this individual made in elections within Ballotpedia's coverage scope.

Notable candidate endorsements by Marilyn Strickland
Endorsee	Election	Stage	Outcome
Kamala D. Harris ^source (D, Working Families Party)	President of the United States (2024)	Primary	Lost General
Barbara Lee ^source (D)	U.S. Senate California (2024)	Primary	Lost Primary

Personal finance disclosures

Members of the House are required to file financial disclosure reports. You can search disclosure reports on the House’s official website here.

Analysis

Below are links to scores and rankings Ballotpedia compiled for members of Congress. We chose analyses that help readers understand how each individual legislator fit into the context of the chamber as a whole in terms of ideology, bill advancement, bipartisanship, and more.

If you would like to suggest an analysis for inclusion in this section, please email editor@ballotpedia.org.

119th Congress (2025-2027)

Rankings and scores for the 119th Congress

118th Congress (2023-2025)

Rankings and scores for the 118th Congress

117th Congress (2021-2023)

Rankings and scores for the 117th Congress

External links

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Candidate

U.S. House Washington District 10

Officeholder

U.S. House Washington District 10

Personal

Footnotes

↑ ^1.0 ^1.1 Marilyn Strickland for Congress, "Meet Marilyn," accessed April 21, 2021
↑ ^2.0 ^2.1 Representative Marilyn Strickland, "Meet Marilyn," accessed April 21, 2021
↑ ^3.0 ^3.1 Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on July 3, 2020

Political offices
Preceded by Denny Heck (D)	U.S. House Washington District 10 2021-Present	Succeeded by -

[show]

Washington's current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators

Maria Cantwell (D)

Patty Murray (D)

Representatives

District 1

Suzan DelBene (D)

District 2

Rick Larsen (D)

District 3

Marie Gluesenkamp Pérez (D)

District 4

Dan Newhouse (R)

District 5

Michael Baumgartner (R)

District 6

Emily Randall (D)

District 7

Pramila Jayapal (D)

District 8

Kim Schrier (D)

District 9

D. Adam Smith (D)

District 10

Marilyn Strickland (D)

Democratic Party (10)

Republican Party (2)

[bio-1] 1.0 ^1.1 Marilyn Strickland for Congress, "Meet Marilyn," accessed April 21, 2021

[bio2-2] 2.0 ^2.1 Representative Marilyn Strickland, "Meet Marilyn," accessed April 21, 2021

[PrevBio-3] 3.0 ^3.1 Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on July 3, 2020

[1]

[2]

[3]

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Marilyn Strickland

Biography

Committee assignments

U.S. House

2025-2026

2023-2024

2021-2022

Elections

2026

General election

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for U.S. House Washington District 10

Endorsements

2024

General election

General election for U.S. House Washington District 10

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for U.S. House Washington District 10

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Endorsements

2022

General election

General election for U.S. House Washington District 10

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for U.S. House Washington District 10

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

2020

General election

General election for U.S. House Washington District 10

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for U.S. House Washington District 10

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Endorsements

Campaign themes

2026

Ballotpedia survey responses

2024

2022

2020

Campaign finance summary

Notable endorsements

Personal finance disclosures

Analysis

119th Congress (2025-2027)

118th Congress (2023-2025)

117th Congress (2021-2023)

See also

External links

Footnotes

Information about voting

2025 Elections

2026 Elections

2024 Election analysis

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Public Policy

Information for candidates

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