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John Braun

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John Braun
Image of John Braun

Republican Party

Candidate, Washington State Senate District 20

Washington State Senate District 20
Tenure

2013 - Present

Term ends

2029

Years in position

12

Compensation

Base salary

$60,191/year

Per diem

$202/day

Elections and appointments
Last elected

November 5, 2024

Next election

November 7, 2028

Education

Bachelor's

University of Washington

Graduate

University of Michigan

Military

Service / branch

U.S. Navy Reserve

Personal
Profession
President of Braun Northwest, emergency vehicle manufacturing company
Contact

Official website

Personal Facebook

Personal LinkedIn 

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John Braun (Republican Party) is a member of the Washington State Senate, representing District 20. He assumed office on January 14, 2013. His current term ends on January 8, 2029.

Braun (Republican Party) is running for re-election to the Washington State Senate to represent District 20. He declared candidacy for the 2028 election.

Braun was elected to serve as Senate minority leader in 2020.[1]

Committee assignments

Note: This membership information was last updated in September 2023. Ballotpedia completes biannual updates of committee membership. If you would like to send us an update, email us at: [email protected].

2023-2024

Braun was assigned to the following committees:

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2021-2022

Braun was assigned to the following committees:

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2019-2020

Braun was assigned to the following committees:

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2017 legislative session

At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:

Washington committee assignments, 2017
• Commerce, Labor & Sports, Vice chair
• Rules
• Ways & Means, Chair

2015 legislative session

At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Braun served on the following committees:

2013-2014

In the 2013-2014 legislative session, Braun served on the following committees:

Issues

Pension reform

See also: Public pensions in Washington

In January 2014, Braun supported legislation that would remove Washington elected officials from the state's pension system. “You might imagine there are some lawmakers that aren’t thrilled with the idea” Braun said in an interview. Braun also stated that the legislation would convince people that Washington lawmakers were leading on the issue of pension reform. “This is a chance for us to show that we are willing to lead by example,” Braun said. The legislation follows the example of other states, particularly Oregon, whose state legislature passed an end to guaranteed pensions for legislators in 2013. A State Budget Solutions report issued in January 2014 concluded that the Washington pension system had $89 billion in unfunded liabilities.[2]

Minimum wage

See also: Minimum wage laws ballot measures

In January 2014, Braun and other Republican legislators supported legislation that would pre-empt any city ordinance in Washington that would set minimum wage floors. If passed, the legislation would also revoke any minimum wage increases approved in cities and municipalities in Washington. The legislation was spurred by recent efforts in SeaTac to increase the minimum wage to $15 an hour through a public vote. Braun stated that his bill is an attempt to protect Washington businesses that operate throughout the entire state and not a position in opposition to the minimum wage. “It’s not like business stops at the city line or the county line,” Braun said. “Making the system more complex is not going to help our situation.”[3]

The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.


Elections

2028

See also: Washington State Senate elections, 2028

Note: At this time, Ballotpedia is combining all declared candidates for this election into one list under a general election heading. As primary election dates are published, this information will be updated to separate general election candidates from primary candidates as appropriate.

General election

The general election will occur on November 7, 2028.

General election for Washington State Senate District 20

Incumbent John Braun is running in the general election for Washington State Senate District 20 on November 7, 2028.

Candidate
Image of John Braun
John Braun (R)

Incumbents are bolded and underlined.

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Endorsements

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Ballotpedia is gathering information about candidate endorsements. To send us an endorsement, click here.

2024

See also: Washington State Senate elections, 2024

General election

General election for Washington State Senate District 20

Incumbent John Braun won election in the general election for Washington State Senate District 20 on November 5, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of John Braun
John Braun (R)
 
96.5
 
69,172
 Other/Write-in votes
 
3.5
 
2,490

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 71,662
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for Washington State Senate District 20

Incumbent John Braun advanced from the primary for Washington State Senate District 20 on August 6, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of John Braun
John Braun (R)
 
95.4
 
35,738
 Other/Write-in votes
 
4.6
 
1,723

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 37,461
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

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Campaign finance

Endorsements

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Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Braun in this election.

2020

See also: Washington State Senate elections, 2020

General election

General election for Washington State Senate District 20

Incumbent John Braun won election in the general election for Washington State Senate District 20 on November 3, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of John Braun
John Braun (R)
 
96.7
 
67,304
 Other/Write-in votes
 
3.3
 
2,299

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 69,603
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for Washington State Senate District 20

Incumbent John Braun advanced from the primary for Washington State Senate District 20 on August 4, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of John Braun
John Braun (R)
 
95.6
 
42,604
 Other/Write-in votes
 
4.4
 
1,968

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 44,572
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

2016

See also: Washington State Senate elections, 2016

Elections for the Washington State Senate took place in 2016. The primary election was held on August 2, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was May 20, 2016.

Incumbent John Braun ran unopposed in the Washington State Senate District 20 general election.[4]

Washington State Senate, District 20 General Election, 2016
Party Candidate
    Republican Green check mark transparent.png John Braun Incumbent (unopposed)
Source: Washington Secretary of State


Incumbent John Braun ran unopposed in the Washington State Senate District 20 top two primary.[5][6]

Washington State Senate, District 20 Top Two Primary, 2016
Party Candidate
    Republican Green check mark transparent.png John Braun Incumbent (unopposed)
Source: Washington Secretary of State

2012

See also: Washington State Senate elections, 2012

Braun won election in the 2012 election for Washington State Senate, District 20. Braun advanced past the August 7 blanket primary election and defeated incumbent Dan Swecker (R) in the general election on November 6, 2012.[7]

Washington State Senate, District 20, General Election, 2012
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngJohn Braun 55.4% 29,943
     Republican Dan Swecker Incumbent 44.6% 24,075
Total Votes 54,018
Washington State Senate, District 20 Blanket Primary, 2012
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngDan Swecker 47% 10,861
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngJohn E. Braun 40.3% 9,327
     Republican Rae Lowery 12.7% 2,936
Total Votes 23,124

Campaign themes

2028

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Candidate Connection

John Braun has not yet completed Ballotpedia's 2028 Candidate Connection survey. If you are John Braun, click here to fill out Ballotpedia's 2028 Candidate Connection survey.

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2024

John Braun did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.

2020

John Braun did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.

2012

Braun's campaign website highlighted the following issues:

  • A Focus on Job Creation
Excerpt: "John will be an outspoken voice for lowering costs of doing business. John knows this will free up small businesses to do what they do best—develop products & services and hire more people. To that end, it’s time we had some serious tort reform as well as stability and efficiency in the regulatory environment."
  • Spending & Taxes
Excerpt: "We must address escalating state wage, benefit, and retirement costs and reverse the growth of government. In times of plenty as well as times of need, we must focus on the priorities of government and basic services. We need Olympia to focus on our district’s needs—including a properly funded educational system and a transportation system that keeps our community moving with maintained bridges and roads. All this and more can and should be done with existing revenue—not new and higher taxes."
  • Educating for our Future
Excerpt: "Adequately funding education is important—but we must be smart with the money as well. That is why John is calling for policies that encourage effectiveness and accountability through transparency. When the public, parents, and elected officials know where tax dollars are going, we are all better able to address problems such as rising administrative costs and failing students."

Campaign finance summary

Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

John Braun campaign contribution history
YearOfficeStatusContributionsExpenditures
2024* Washington State Senate District 20Won general$415,000 $414,986
2020Washington State Senate District 20Won general$459,974 N/A**
2016Washington State Senate, District 20Won $236,608 N/A**
2012Washington State Senate, District 20Won $116,816 N/A**
Grand total$1,228,398 $414,986
Sources: OpenSecrets,  Federal Elections Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* Data from this year may not be complete
** Data on expenditures is not available for this election cycle
Note: Totals above reflect only available data.

Scorecards

See also: State legislative scorecards and State legislative scorecards in Washington

A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.

Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.

Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Washington scorecards, email suggestions to [email protected].


2024


2023


2022


2021


2020


2019


2018


2017


2016


2015


2014


2013


Missed Votes Report

See also: Washington House of Representatives and Washington State Senate

In March 2014, Washington Votes, a legislative information website, released its annual Missed Votes Report, which provides detailed missed roll call votes on bills for every state legislator during the 2014 legislative session.[10] The 2014 regular session included a total of 515 votes in the State House and 396 in the State Senate, as well as 1,372 bills introduced total in the legislature and 237 bills passed. Out of all roll call votes, 90 individual legislators did not miss any votes. Three individual legislators missed more than 50 votes.[10] Braun missed 2 votes in a total of 1017 roll calls.

Personal

Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.

Email [email protected] to notify us of updates to this biography.

Braun lives with his wife, Marlo, and four children on a farm in Lewis County.

On July 18, 2017, Marlo was sworn in as a temporary state senator to fill in for John during his required service with the Navy Reserve. Her role in that position lasted until July 23, 2017. At the time of Marlo's tenure, Washington State Legislature was in its third special session, sorting out a $4 billion capital budget.[11]

See also

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External links

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Officeholder

Washington State Senate District 20

  • Website
    		•

    Personal

  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
    		•

    Footnotes

    1. ↑ The Daily Chronicle, "Centralia Republican John Braun Elected to Serve as Senate Minority Leader," December 4, 2020
    2. ↑ WatchDog.org, "Democratic opposition kills aggressive retirement reform in Washington state," accessed February 20, 2014
    3. ↑ WatchDog.org, "WA Republicans take aim at community organizers, minimum wage," accessed February 10, 2014
    4. ↑ Washington Secretary of State, "General Election Results 2016," accessed December 2, 2016
    5. ↑ Washington Secretary of State, "2016 Candidates Who Have Filed," accessed May 23, 2016
    6. ↑ Washington Secretary of State, "August 2, 2016 Primary Results," accessed August 25, 2016
    7. ↑ Washington Secretary of State, "2012 Primary Candidates," accessed April 10, 2014
    8. ↑ Multi State, "2015 State Legislative Session Dates," accessed July 13, 2015
    9. ↑ StateScape, "Session schedules," accessed July 23, 2014
    10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Washington Policy Center, "2014 Missed Votes Report for Legislators Released," March 18, 2014
    11. ↑ The Chronicle, "Sen. Braun’s Wife Takes Seat in Final Days of Session," July 20, 2017

    Political offices
    Preceded by
    -     		Washington State Senate District 20
    2013-Present    		 Succeeded by
    -


    Current members of the Washington State Senate
    Leadership
    Majority Leader:Jamie Pedersen
    Minority Leader:John Braun
    Senators
    District 1
    District 2
    District 3
    District 4
    District 5
    Vacant
    District 6
    Jeff Holy (R)
    District 7
    District 8
    District 9
    District 10
    District 11
    District 12
    District 13
    District 14
    District 15
    District 16
    District 17
    District 18
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    District 20
    District 21
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    District 28
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    District 37
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    District 39
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    District 42
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    District 44
    District 45
    District 46
    District 47
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    Democratic Party (29)
    Republican Party (19)
    Vacancies (1)


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