Moderates eye coalition to shift debates, votes in WA statehouse

OLYMPIA — Republican candidates running for state Senate this year say they have a plan to push back on progressive policies coming out of Olympia: forming a bipartisan coalition of moderates that could work together to block certain legislation and tax increases.

The possibility of a new moderate coalition comes with a few key swing Senate seats in play in the November election and as lawmakers prepare for a 2026 legislative session that will likely focus, again, on tax reforms and affordability. A united block of moderates, especially in the more narrowly divided Senate, could reshape how those debates unfold and complicate the Democratic majority’s ability to push its agenda through.

According to the Republican candidates, there is already an appetite in the statehouse from some Repub