Majority Coalition Caucus

Last updated

Majority Coalition Caucus of the State of Washington
President Pro Tempore of the Senate Tim Sheldon (D)
(2012–2015)
Pam Roach (R)
(2015–2017)
Tim Sheldon (D)
(2017)
Senate Majority Leader Rodney Tom (D)
(2012–2014)
Mark Schoesler (R)
(2014–2017)
Senate Republican Caucus Leader Mark Schoesler (R)
FoundedDecember 10, 2012 (2012-12-10)
DissolvedNovember 15, 2017 (2017-11-15)
Ideology 2012–2015:
Bipartisanship
Syncreticism
2015–2017:
Fiscal conservatism
Social moderatism
Political position Center to center-right
Seats in the State Senate (at dissolution)
24 / 49

The Majority Coalition Caucus (MCC) was a caucus formed on December 10, 2012, by all 23 Republican members of the Washington State Senate and two Democratic senators. Its membership constituted a majority of the chamber's 49 members, allowing it to take control of the Senate from the Democratic caucus whose members had previously formed a majority. The MCC, operating much like a coalition government, offered an equal number of committee leadership positions to Republicans and Democrats. Senate Democrats accepted only three of the nine positions offered them. The Republicans strengthened their position by gaining one seat in the 2013 election, but lost its majority following a special election in November 2017. The coalition has 23 Republicans and one self-identified Democratic senator, Tim Sheldon. On November 15, 2017, the Majority Coalition Caucus returned to being the state Senate Republican Caucus. [1]

Contents

Formation and organization

In the November 2012 elections, Republicans gained one seat in the Washington State Senate, reducing the Democratic majority to 26 out of 49 seats. On December 10, 2012, two Democratic state senators, Tim Sheldon and Rodney Tom, announced they would caucus with the Republicans to create a Republican Majority Caucus with 25 of 49 seats. [2] [3]

The MCC has the power to appoint the chairpersons and members of the twelve policy and three fiscal committees that play a leading role in considering and advancing legislation, much like U.S. Senate committees. The MCC proposed six Republican chairs and six Democratic chairs and co-chairs drawn from both parties for the remaining committees.

Senate Democrats rejected offers to chair or co-chair any committees offered them except three: Steve Hobbs chaired the Financial Institutions & Insurance Committee, Brian Hatfield chaired the Agriculture, Water & Rural Economic Development Committee, and Tracey Eide co-chaired the Transportation Committee with Curtis King. [4] However, by December 2014 Hobbs, Hatfield, and Eide's roles had been reduced to "ranking minority member" on each of their committees in favor of Republican leadership. [5]

The MCC's two Democratic members were given leadership positions: Rodney Tom was Senate Majority Leader, Tim Sheldon (MCC) was the President Pro Tempore of the Senate. Republican Mark Schoesler headed the Senate Republican Caucus, which continued to operate even while all its members belong as well to the MCC. [2] [6]

The election of Republican Jan Angel in 2013 to the Senate gave the MCC 26 of the 49 seats. Rodney Tom characterized this as an "exponential" increase in the coalition's leverage. [7]

In the 2014 election Rodney Tom decided not to seek re-election because of family problems. However, the caucus maintained its majority with 26 senators. [8]

The Majority Coalition Caucus lost its majority in the 2017 special election, which saw the election of Democrat Manka Dhingra. On 15 November 2017 the Majority Coalition Caucus was dissolved and all of its members rejoined the Senate Republican Caucus; despite being registered as a Democrat, Tim Sheldon continued to caucus with Republicans. [9]

In the 2018 election, Washington Democratic Party regained its majority in the Senate, electing 28 seats.

Composition

The caucus at peak membership in January 2014. Majority: .mw-parser-output .legend{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .legend-color{display:inline-block;min-width:1.25em;height:1.25em;line-height:1.25;margin:1px 0;text-align:center;border:1px solid black;background-color:transparent;color:black}.mw-parser-output .legend-text{} Republicans (24) Coalition Democrats (2) Non-Coalition Democrats in Majority (3) Minority: Democrats (20) WashingtonStateSenateMCC.svg
The caucus at peak membership in January 2014. Majority:
  Republicans (24)
  Coalition Democrats (2)
  Non-Coalition Democrats in Majority (3)
Minority:
  Democrats (20)
AffiliationParty
(Shading indicates majority caucus)
Total
CoalitionNon-coalition
Republican Democratic Vacant
After 2012 Election23224490
2013 Session232321490
2014 Session242320490
2015–16 Session25123490
2017 Session24124490

Majority Coalition Caucus-Led Committees

CommitteeMakeupChairRanking Member
Accountability & Reform3 MCC / 2 D Mark Miloscia Pramila Jayapal
Agriculture, Water & Rural Economic Development3 MCC / 2 D Judith Warnick Brian Hatfield
Commerce & Labor4 MCC / 3 D Michael Baumgartner Bob Hasegawa
Early Learning & K-12 Education5 MCC / 4 D Steve Litzow Rosemary McAuliffe
Energy, Environment & Telecommunications5 MCC / 4 D Doug Ericksen John McCoy
Financial Institutions & Insurance5 MCC / 4 D Don Benton Mark Mullet
Government Operations & State Security4 MCC / 3 D Pam Roach Marko Liias
Health Care8 MCC / 5 D Randi Becker David Frockt
Higher Education4 MCC / 3 D Barbara Bailey Jeanne Kohl-Welles
Human Services, Mental Health & Housing3 MCC / 2 D Steve O'Ban Jeannie Darneille
Law & Justice4 MCC / 3 D Mike Padden Jamie Pedersen
Natural Resources & Parks4 MCC / 3 D Kirk Pearson Brian Hatfield
Rules11 MCC / 7 D Brad Owen Pam Roach
Trade & Economic Development4 MCC / 3 D Sharon Brown Maralyn Chase
Transportation9 MCC / 6 D Curtis King Steve Hobbs
Ways & Means13 MCC / 10 D Andy Hill James Hargrove

List of MCC members

DistrictSenatorPartyResidenceFirst elected
2 Randi Becker Republican Eatonville 2008
4 Mike Padden Republican Spokane Valley 2011†
6 Michael Baumgartner Republican Spokane 2010
7 Brian Dansel Republican Republic 2013†
8 Sharon Brown Republican Kennewick 2013*
9 Mark Schoesler Republican Ritzville 2004
10 Barbara Bailey Republican Oak Harbor 2012
12 Linda Evans Parlette Republican Wenatchee 2000
13 Judy Warnick Republican Moses Lake 2014
14 Curtis King Republican Yakima 2007†
15 Jim Honeyford Republican Sunnyside 1998
16 Mike Hewitt Republican Walla Walla 2000
17 Don Benton Republican Vancouver 1996
18 Ann Rivers Republican La Center 2012
20 John Braun Republican Centralia 2012
25 Bruce Dammeier Republican Puyallup 2012
26 Jan Angel Republican Port Orchard 2013†
28 Steve O'Ban Republican Tacoma 2013*
30 Mark Miloscia Republican Federal Way 2014
31 Pam Roach Republican Sumner 1990
35 Tim Sheldon Democratic (MCC) Potlatch 1996
39 Kirk Pearson Republican Monroe 2012
41 Steve Litzow Republican Mercer Island 2010†
42 Doug Ericksen Republican Ferndale 2010
45 Andy Hill Republican Redmond 2010
47 Joe Fain Republican Auburn 2010
  • Originally appointed
†Originally Elected in Special Election

Responses

Most local media initially responded with cautious optimism to the announced coalition, [10] though a columnist in the Spokesman-Review responded with skepticism. [11] Democratic leaders denounced the MCC as "the exact opposite of collaboration" and denied that it was bi-partisan. [12]

See also

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References

  1. ↑ "MCC returns to the Senate Republican Caucus". Twitter. November 15, 2017. Retrieved January 10, 2018.
  2. 1 2 Tom, Rodney; Schoesler, Mark (December 16, 2012). "Op-ed: State Senate's new Majority Coalition Caucus will govern across party lines". Seattle Times. Retrieved December 16, 2012.
  3. ↑ "Washington State Senate: Republicans Claim Majority After Democrats Defect". HuffPost. December 11, 2012. Retrieved December 11, 2012.
  4. ↑ "Legislature: Power play puts Senate in GOP hands". Seattletimes.com. January 14, 2013. Retrieved January 17, 2013.
  5. ↑ "Republicans begin remaking Senate". The Spokesman-Review. December 14, 2014. Retrieved January 6, 2019.
  6. ↑ "Op-ed: 2013–14 Policy Committee Structure" (PDF). Senate Republicans. December 10, 2012. Retrieved December 17, 2012.
  7. ↑ Jordan Schrader (November 7, 2013). "With Jan Angel's victory, state Senate majority will grow". The News Tribune. Archived from the original on December 20, 2013. Retrieved December 19, 2013.
  8. ↑ "TVW, Washington States' Public Affairs Network – Public Affairs Made Public" . Retrieved November 21, 2019.
  9. ↑ CoalitionWA, Majority (November 15, 2017). "MCC returns to the Senate Republican Caucus. Still a bipartisan coalition dedicated to jobs, education and the budget. Serving all of Washington's families. To continue to follow our caucus and agenda, follow @WashingtonSRC #waleghttp://ow.ly/7xCE30gBs6u". @WashingtonMCC. Retrieved November 21, 2019.{{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
  10. ↑ Thanh Tan (December 13, 2012). "Editorial Round-Up: Washington newspapers cautiously optimistic about Senate's new Majority Coalition Caucus". Seattle Times. Retrieved December 16, 2012.
  11. ↑ Jim Camden (December 16, 2012). "Spin Control: Coalition majority might not be so great". Spokesman-Review. Retrieved December 16, 2012.
  12. ↑ Ed Murray and Karen Fraser (December 13, 2012). "Op-ed: Don't call the state Senate's Majority Coalition Caucus bipartisan". Seattle Times. Retrieved December 16, 2012.
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