Northwest lawmakers react to Biden and Harris’s victory

Here are some of the reactions from Northwest politicians to Joe Biden being declared the apparent winner of the presidential election:

“The American people have spoken … The Biden-Harris administration will restore our nation to its principles, with respect for the rights of each and every American regardless of personal opinion or patronage … advance an agenda of recovery and sustainability. They will lead a strong and science-based approach to fight the COVID-19 pandemic and rebuilding our economy and addressing the hardship faced by millions.” – Washington Gov. Jay Inslee.

“American voters spoke … because of them and because of every one of you who didn’t just hope but acted on that hope – who got involved, organized and voted – we are further on our way to a future where justice, dignity and opportunity are a reality for each and every one of us.” – U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash.

“My heartfelt thanks to Joe Biden on running on a platform of uniting the country, delivering the plan and resources needed to fight COVID-19 and working on an economic agenda for all Americans … Joe Biden is the right man for this job of moving our country forward.” – U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash.

“I can see the challenge to me, as a member of Congress, will be to educate new members of the potential Biden administration as to our priorities, challenges that we face in the Pacific Northwest and make sure that they understand the significance of many of the issues that they may not be familiar with … I’m certain that we can – no matter who’s in the White House, still make a lot of progress on the issues that are important.” – U.S. Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Wash.

“I hope they work to address the divisions in our country and provide the leadership to recover from the pandemic. I also celebrate the first woman, first Black woman, the first person of Indian and Asian descent to be vice president in our country … Our children of all genders will see a woman of color serving as a national leader. This will broaden the collective view of what a leader looks like.” – Spokane Public Schools Board Member Nikki Otero Lockwood, first Latinx person elected to office in Spokane.

“I extend my enthusiastic congratulations to President-elect Joe Biden on his victory and for showing us that compassion, truth and science win out over cruelty, fear and lies … Today is so much bigger than these two individuals or one political party. Today is only possible because people across our state and throughout our country put aside cynicism, doubts and fears to step up, speak out and organize – not only for this election but for the past four years of the Trump presidency. ” – U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash.