Senator Linda Evans Parlette was elected to the state House of Representatives in 1996 and 1998, and the state Senate in 2000, 2004 and 2008. She represents Washington’s 12th Legislative District and is the fourth generation in her family born and raised in Central Washington. Senator Parlette graduated from Chelan High School as Valedictorian, attended Washington State University and in 1968 graduated from WSU with a Bachelor’s of Science degree with honors in pharmacy.

Senator Parlette is given the oath of office by Washington Supreme Court Chief Justice Gerry Alexander.

Senator Parlette was selected by her peers in 2004 to serve as Senate Republican Caucus Deputy Leader, and in late 2006 was promoted by her peers to serve as Caucus Chair. She brings to her job as a state legislator real-life experience in many areas, including as a pharmacist and orchardist. Senator Parlette serves on four standing Senate committees:  Health and Long-Term Care; Financial Institutions and Insurance; Ways and Means; and Rules.

Sen. Parlette’s experience as a pharmacist serves as a good foundation for her work on health care issues, including her current and former work on the National Conference of State Legislatures’ (NCSL) Health Care Committee, the governor’s Blue Ribbon Commission on Health Care, the Joint Task Force on Mental Health Services and Financing (also called the Mental Health Task Force), the Joint Select Committee on Health Disparities, the Task Force on Long-Term Care Financing and Chronic Care Management, and the Joint Legislative Task Force on Nursing Homes. While serving in the House, Senator Parlette was co-chair of the Health Care Committee, and is currently a member of the Washington State Pharmacy Association.

Senator Parlette’s work as an orchardist has helped her understand first-hand the importance of agriculture in Washington state, as well as the needs of small businesses owners. In 2008, Senator Parlette received the Farm Bureau’s “Legislator of the Year” award and the Washington Agriculture and Forestry Association’s Stu Bledsoe Leadership Memorial Award, given each year to leaders who make a difference in their communities.

Senator Parlette and Secretary of State Sam Reed watch as the 2007 Apple Blossom Festival royalty register to vote.

She is a ten-year recipient of the Association of Washington Business’s “Cornerstone” award and in 2006 received the National Federation of Independent Business’s “Legislator of the Year” award. In the spring of 1997, after finishing her first session in the House of Representatives, the Seattle Times named Senator Parlette as one of six new legislators who were “freshman with a future.”

Not all visitors to the Capitol are people! When the Port of Chelan brought it's hybrid car to the Capitol Campus, Senator Parlette took the opportunity to check it out.

When the Legislature is not in session, Senator Parlette resides in Wenatchee with her husband Bob. Together they have five grown children and three granddaughters.

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