Mike Pellicciotti
24th Treasurer of Washington
Assumed office
January 13, 2021
GovernorJay Inslee
Preceded byDuane Davidson
Member of the Washington House of Representatives
from the 30th district
In office
January 9, 2017 – January 11, 2021
Preceded byLinda Kochmar
Succeeded byJamila Taylor
Personal details
Born
Michael John Pellicciotti

(1978-07-17) July 17, 1978[1]
Federal Way, Washington, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
EducationAlfred University (BS)
Brandon University (MRD)
Gonzaga University (JD)
WebsiteGovernment website

Michael John Pellicciotti[2] (born July 17, 1978)[3] is an American attorney and politician who has served as the 24th Washington State Treasurer since 2021. He previously served as a Democratic member of the Washington House of Representatives for the 30th legislative district, which includes Federal Way, Algona, Auburn, Pacific, Milton, and Des Moines from 2017 to 2021.[4]

Education

Pellicciotti attended Alfred University, where he was elected student body president.[5] After college, he received a Master of Rural Development as a Fulbright Scholar at Brandon University in 2003.[6][7][8] Pellicciotti then attended Gonzaga University School of Law, where he nationally represented almost 50,000 students as chair of the student division of the American Bar Association and led student advocacy to Congress for student debt relief.[9][10]

Pellicciotti began his legal career as law clerk to Associate Chief Justice Charles W. Johnson of the Washington Supreme Court.[11] Pellicciotti then served as a King County Deputy Prosecuting Attorney, prosecuting domestic violence and sex trafficking offenders in South King County.[12] Attorney General Bob Ferguson appointed Pellicciotti an Assistant Attorney General to manage prosecution of corporate health care fraud and elder abuse in Washington, where he returned over $30 million to taxpayers.[13][14][15]

State representative

Mike Pellicciotti was first elected to the Washington State House of Representatives in 2016, defeating multi-term Republican incumbent Linda Kochmar by 9 points to secure a one-seat Democratic majority of the Washington State House of Representatives.[16][17] President Barack Obama endorsed Pellicciotti in the campaign.[18][19][20] Pellicciotti was re-elected in 2018, defeating former Rep. Linda Kochmar again, this time with over 60% of the vote.[21]

Pellicciotti has rejected all corporate campaign contributions.[22][23] As a legislator, he led campaign finance reforms, including passing a law to remove ”dark money” from politics.[24] He introduced legislation to close the lobbyist ”revolving door” in Washington State, and he wrote and passed into law the Corporate Crime Act that increased penalties for corporate crimes for the first time in nearly a century.[25] He was also the first legislator to speak out against the Legislature's attempt to hide lawmakers’ public records, while voluntarily disclosing his own.[26][27][28]

Treasurer of Washington

In May 2019, Pellicciotti announced his candidacy for Washington State Treasurer in 2020.[29] Pellicciotti defeated incumbent Republican Duane Davidson in the general election, the first time in state history that a challenger defeated a sitting Washington State Treasurer.[30] In 2020, Pellicciotti was the only Democratic candidate for any statewide executive office in the United States to defeat a Republican incumbent.[31]

At 42 years old, Pellicciotti was Washington’s youngest statewide elected official when he was sworn in as State Treasurer in January 2021.[32] During his first year in office, Pellicciotti refinanced state debt to save Washington State over $370 million dollars.[33][34][35] He increased pension funding and returned budget reserves to pre-pandemic levels.[36] In 2022, Washington maintained Moody’s top credit rating.[37]

Pellicciotti proposed creating a Washington Future Fund to address the wealth gap.[38] The proposal is modeled after the Baby bonds concept that invests state money today to create future home ownership, educational, and small business opportunities two decades later when those born of limited means reach adulthood.[39][40] The 2022 state budget created the Washington Future Fund Committee to examine Pellicciotti’s proposal and study generational wealth inequities in the state.[41]

After a rash of robberies of cash-heavy cannabis retailers in Washington state in 2022, Pellicciotti went to Washington D.C. to unite state treasurers and Congress in support of cannabis banking.[42][43][44] He was a leading advocate for the Senate to pass the SAFE Banking Act in order to legalize cannabis banking in the United States.[45][46][47][48]

Electoral history

Washington's State Treasurer, General Election 2020[49]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Mike Pellicciotti 2,089,159 53.41
Republican Duane Davidson (Incumbent) 1,818,895 46.50
Washington's State Treasurer, Primary Election 2020[50]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Mike Pellicciotti 1,279,452 53.22
Republican Duane Davidson (Incumbent) 1,121,885 46.67
Washington's 30th Legislative District State Representative, Pos. 1, General Election 2018[51]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Mike Pellicciotti (Incumbent) 28,563 61.23
Republican Linda Kochmar 18,085 38.77
Washington's 30th Legislative District State Representative, Pos. 1, Primary Election 2018[52]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Mike Pellicciotti (Incumbent) 15,043 58.95
Republican Linda Kochmar 10,474 41.05
Washington's 30th Legislative District State Representative, Pos. 1, General Election 2016[53]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Mike Pellicciotti 26,820 54.42
Republican Linda Kochmar (Incumbent) 22,465 45.58
Washington's 30th Legislative District State Representative, Pos. 1, Primary Election 2016[54]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Mike Pellicciotti 10,828 52.31
Republican Linda Kochmar (Incumbent) 9,873 47.69

References

  1. ↑ "LD30, Pos. 1, Q&A with Mike Pellicciotti - Election Season 2016". Federal Way Mirror. September 14, 2016. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
  2. ↑ "Fellows News" (PDF). American Bar Foundation. Fall 2006. Retrieved December 22, 2021.
  3. ↑ "Election Center".
  4. ↑ "Rep. Mike Pellicciotti 30th Legislative District Official Page". Washington State Legislature. December 25, 2017. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  5. ↑ "West Lake People". NW Indiana Times. September 14, 2003. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  6. ↑ "Fulbright Scholars". Alfred University. August 28, 2000. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  7. ↑ Brandon University - MRD Graduate and DRD Diploma Graduate List
  8. ↑ Brandon University Rural Work
  9. ↑ "West Lake People". NW Indiana Times. September 14, 2003. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  10. ↑ "Student Debt Relief" (PDF). The Young Lawyer. September 2007. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  11. ↑ "Clerkships" (PDF). Gonzaga University School of Law. Fall 2004. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  12. ↑ "Mike Pellicciotti to Challenge Rep. Linda Kochmar for Federal Way's 30th Legislative District". Federal Way Mirror. January 7, 2016. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  13. ↑ "Mike Pellicciotti to Challenge Rep. Linda Kochmar for Federal Way's 30th Legislative District". Federal Way Mirror. January 7, 2016. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  14. ↑ "State Settles Lawsuit Against Extendicare". Business Examiner. October 2014. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  15. ↑ "The Times recommends: Mike Pellicciotti for 30th Legislative District, Position 1". The Seattle Times. October 9, 2016. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  16. ↑ "Washington 30th District Position One State House Results". The New York Times. August 1, 2017. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  17. ↑ "GOP Democratic Split in State Legislature". The Seattle Times. November 22, 2016. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  18. ↑ "In a First, President Obama Endorses 3 Democrats in Washington Legislative Races". Tacoma News Tribune. October 25, 2016. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  19. ↑ "President Obama Endorses in Local State Legislative Races". KING5 News. October 24, 2016. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  20. ↑ "Mike Pellicciotti to Challenge Rep. Linda Kochmar for Federal Way's 30th Legislative District". Federal Way Mirror. January 7, 2016. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  21. ↑ "Democrats Take Early Lead in All 30th District Races". Federal Way Mirror. November 7, 2018. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
  22. ↑ "Democratic Candidates Have Their Say at Auburn Forum". The Auburn Reporter. October 1, 2018. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
  23. ↑ "Pellicciotti looks to become the first challenger to defeat incumbent state treasurer in state history". FOX 28. November 3, 2020. Retrieved June 24, 2021.
  24. ↑ "The Times Recommends Mike Pellicciotti for Legislative District 30 House Position 1". Seattle Times. October 1, 2018. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
  25. ↑ "State Rep Mike Pellicciotti Announces Early Bid for State Treasurer". Federal Way Mirror. May 17, 2019. Retrieved June 24, 2021.
  26. ↑ "Lawsuit by AP, others seeks emails from Washington lawmakers". The Chicago Tribune. September 12, 2017. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  27. ↑ "Lawmakers Should Open Their Records to the Public". The Seattle Times. September 15, 2017. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  28. ↑ "Mirror Endorses Candidates for 30th District". The Federal Way Mirror. October 16, 2018. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
  29. ↑ "State Rep. Mike Pellicciotti announces early bid for state treasurer". NBC KHQ. May 17, 2019. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  30. ↑ "Pellicciotti looks to become first challenger to defeat incumbent state treasurer in state history". NBC KHQ. November 3, 2020. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  31. ↑ "State executive official elections-State offices that changed control". Ballotpedia. February 9, 2021. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  32. ↑ "Washington State Elected Officials". Washington Secretary of State. March 8, 2021. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  33. ↑ "Treasurer Signs State Debt Refinancing Tuesday". Office of the State Treasurer. November 1, 2021. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  34. ↑ "State Treasurer Mike Pellicciotti announces large debt refinancing". The Columbian. May 3, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  35. ↑ "State Treasurer Heads into Debt Refinancing with Strong Ratings Affirmed, Helping Save Washington Millions". Office of the Washington State Treasurer. April 25, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  36. ↑ "Democrats react to Washington's elite credit rating". Washington Senate Democrats. April 26, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  37. ↑ "Democrats react to Washington's elite credit rating". Washington Senate Democrats. April 26, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  38. ↑ "A Once Radical Idea to Close the Wealth Gap Is Actually Happening". Bloomberg Businessweek. March 17, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  39. ↑ "A Once Radical Idea to Close the Wealth Gap Is Actually Happening". Bloomberg Businessweek. March 17, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  40. ↑ "'Washington Future Fund Trust' Would Set Aside at Least $3.2K for Each Eligible Child". The Chronicle. January 22, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  41. ↑ "Budget funds key first step in State Treasurer's wealth gap initiative". Office of the Washington State Treasurer. March 31, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  42. ↑ "Washington treasurer pushes Congress for solution to rash of violent pot shop robberies". MyNorthwest KTTH. March 21, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  43. ↑ "Washington treasurer pushes for cannabis banking bill as pot shop robberies soar". KING5 TV. March 17, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  44. ↑ "Violent robberies at pot shops fuel new efforts for federal marijuana banking reform". Q13 TV. April 20, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  45. ↑ "How to stop pot-shop robberies: Allow stores access to banking". The Seattle Times. March 24, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  46. ↑ "Violent robberies at pot shops fuel new efforts for federal marijuana banking reform". Q13 TV. April 20, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  47. ↑ "Cannabis crime wave boosts banking prospects on Capitol Hill". Politico. May 10, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  48. ↑ "Washington State treasurer urges Congress to pass SAFE Banking Act". Financial Regulation News. April 5, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  49. ↑ "Washington Secretary of State, 2020 General Election Results – State Treasurer". vote.wa.gov. November 3, 2020. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
  50. ↑ "Washington Secretary of State, 2018 Primary Election Results – State Treasurer". vote.wa.gov. August 4, 2020. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
  51. ↑ "Washington Secretary of State, 2018 General Election Results - Legislative District 30". vote.wa.gov. November 6, 2018. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
  52. ↑ "Washington Secretary of State, 2018 Primary Election Results - Legislative District 30". vote.wa.gov. August 7, 2018. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
  53. ↑ "Washington Secretary of State, 2016 General Election Results - Legislative District 30". vote.wa.gov. November 8, 2016. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
  54. ↑ "Washington Secretary of State, 2016 Primary Election Results - Legislative District 30". vote.wa.gov. August 2, 2010. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
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