Legislative District 46 - State Senator
Legislative (Senate) District 46; Washington
My vote power
High
Election date
August 4, 2026 · Primary election
How do we calculate my vote power?
What goes into the rating: Representation: how much weight one vote carries here compared with a statewide vote — the smaller the district, the more each vote counts. Decisiveness: how likely this race is to be close, based on past results or current analyst ratings, plus the number of candidates.
Representation: High · 67 out of 100
This district is a small slice of its state, so each vote here carries much more weight than a vote in a statewide race. About 160,235 people live here.
Show the representation math
score = 50 + 50 × ln(state population ÷ this district's) ÷ ln(50,000) = 50 + 50 × ln(7,816,116 ÷ 160,235) ÷ ln(50,000) = 67.96, measured against a statewide vote in WA (grades: 66+ high, 55+ above average, 33+ average, otherwise low; a statewide race is the 50 baseline)
Decisiveness: Unknown
No analyst ratings or past results for this contest yet.
High representation → My vote power: High.
Some data is missing, so this rating is based on partial information and capped at "High".
About this office
- Voting on how much you pay in state taxes
- Voting on how much money your local public schools get
- Voting on which roads and highways get built or repaired
Affects: AI Regulation, Healthcare Affordability, Environment and Public Health,
Candidates
Javier Valdez
AdvancedDemocratic · Incumbent · advanced
Javier Valdez is a public servant rooted in a legacy of farmworkers and laborers who has championed gun safety, hate crimes, election integrity and civil rights. He holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from the University of Washington and a master's from Baruch College.
Records: Labor Rights 26 for, Housing Affordability 18 for, Civil Rights 17 for,
Sandra Stephens
AdvancedRepublican · advanced
Sandra Stephens is a registered nurse who spent her last 16 years as a charge nurse at UW Northwest Hospital and holds a nursing degree from Oregon Health Sciences University. She wants audits of state money paid to nonprofits and protection for freedom of conscience.
Results
Advanced · Certified
Winners: Javier Valdez (Democratic), Sandra Stephens (Republican)
Source: cdn.kingcounty.gov · researched September 12, 2026
Sources: sos.wa.gov2 · www2.sos.wa.gov