2026 in Washington (state)

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See also:	History of Washington (state) Historical outline of Washington (state) List of years in Washington (state) 2026 in the United States

The following is a list of events of the year 2026 in the U.S. state of Washington .

Incumbents

State government

• Governor:
  • Bob Ferguson

Events

January

• January 1
  • State minimum wage increases to $17.13 per hour, ^[1] highest state rate in the nation, only behind District of Columbia. Bellingham, Burien, Everett, King County, Renton, SeaTac, Seattle and Tukwila have higher minimums. ^[2]
  • State nicotine excise tax increases to 95% ^[3]
• January 5
  • Organizers of the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival announce that the 2026 festival will not be negatively affected by record flooding on the Skagit River in 2025, which was earlier feared could harm bulbs. Hundreds of thousands of visitors to Skagit Valley usually attend the festival. ^{[4] [5]}
  • The Washington Attorney General says he is aware of "allegations of [daycare] fraud" in Washington, Ohio, and Minnesota, and says it is a local or federal matter, not under his office's jurisdiction, and cautions against "random vigilante people" visiting providers. ^[6]
• January 9 – Two snowmobilers are killed in an avalanche in northern Kittitas County. ^[7]
• January 17 – Multiple shootings in the Chinatown-International District in Seattle kill one person and hospitalize four others. ^[8]

February

• February 8 – The Seattle Seahawks win Super Bowl LX, beating the New England Patriots 29–13. ^[9]
• February 10 – Special elections are held. ^{[10] [11]}
• February 11 – The Seahawks victory parade is held in Seattle. ^[12]
• February 24 – A man stabs four people to death outside a home on the Key Peninsula near Gig Harbor before being shot and killed by a sheriff's deputy. ^{[13] [14]}

March

• March 10 – Seattle passes an emergency resolution to ban new ICE immigration detention centers for one year. ^[15]
• March 12 – One person is killed in Snohomish County and 35,000 households in Western Washington are without power due to a wind and rain storm. ^[16]
• March 28: The Sound Transit's 2 Line light rail connection between Eastside and Seattle over Lake Washington, known as the Crosslake Connection, opens for passenger service. ^[17]

Scheduled

• April 1–30 – Skagit Valley Tulip Festival
• April 28 – Special election ^[10]
• May 7–17 – Seattle International Film Festival
• November 3 – U.S. Midterm elections and state elections
  • 2026 United States House of Representatives elections in Washington
  • 2026 Washington House of Representatives election
  • 2026 Washington State Senate election
  • Washington State Supreme Court election

Sports

Events

• June 24 – 2026 FIFA World Cup Group B Playoff Winner A vs. Qatar, Seattle ^[18]

Professional

• 2025–26 Seattle Kraken season
• 2026 Seattle Mariners season
• 2026 Seattle Sounders FC season
• 2026 Seattle Storm season

College

• September: Apple Cup in Seattle
• 2025–26 Eastern Washington Eagles men's basketball team
• 2025–26 Gonzaga Bulldogs men's basketball team
• 2025–26 Seattle Kraken season
• 2025–26 Seattle Redhawks men's basketball team
• 2025–26 Washington Huskies men's basketball team
• 2025–26 Washington Huskies women's basketball team
• 2025–26 Washington State Cougars men's basketball team

See also

• 2026 in the United States

References

1. "2026 Minimum Wage Announcement" (PDF). lni.wa.gov.
2. Yannet Lathrop (December 2025), Raises from Coast to Coast in 2026 (PDF), National Employement Law Project
3. Brett Davis (December 31, 2025). "Several new laws to take effect in Washington state in 2026". The Center Square – via Yahoo! News.
4. Monica Nickelsberg (January 5, 2026). "Flooding won't dampen Skagit Valley Tulip Festival". Seattle: KUOW.
5. Cocoa Laney (December 11, 2025). "For Skagit Valley tulip farmers, flooding is a 'wait-and-see game'". Cascadia Daily News . Bellingham.
6. Chris Daniels (January 6, 2026). "Washington AG Nick Brown addresses viral child care fraud complaints, DCYF outlines policy". Seattle: KOMO-TV.
7. Romero, Dennis; Alsharif, Mirna (January 11, 2026). "2 men killed in avalanche in central Washington". NBC News. Retrieved January 11, 2026.
8. Jensen, Jim (2026-01-17). "One dead, others injured after shootings in Seattle's Chinatown-International District". Fox 13 Seattle . Retrieved 2026-01-17.
9. Tanyos, Fanis (February 8, 2026). "Seahawks win 2026 Super Bowl. Here are the highlights from the big game". CBS News. Retrieved February 8, 2026.
10. "Elections – dates and deadlines 2026". Official website. Washington Secretary of State. Retrieved 2026-01-23.
11. "February 2026 Special Election". King County Department of Elections. Retrieved 2026-01-23.
12. Wiley, Elizabeth (February 8, 2026). "Here's what we know about the Seahawks Championship Ceremony and Parade in Seattle". KING-TV.
13. "Man stabs four people to death in Washington state". The Guardian. February 24, 2026. Retrieved February 24, 2026.
14. "Suspect and 4 others are dead after stabbing near Tacoma, Washington, authorities say". The Associated Press. February 24, 2026. Retrieved February 24, 2026.
15. Sagrero Álvarez, Gustavo (2026-03-10). "Seattle bans new ICE detention centers for 1 year". KUOW . Retrieved 2026-03-11.
16. "Powerful windstorm sweeps across Western Washington leaving 1 dead, 35,000 without power". KUOW . 2026-03-12. Retrieved 2026-03-12.
17. Elizabeth Wiley (January 23, 2026). "Sound Transit says crosslake light rail connection will open in late March". KING-TV.
18. 2026 World Cup: Full List of Matches, Schedule, Sports Illustrated, December 5, 2025