Marcus Riccelli named to leadership post before first day in Senate

When Marcus Riccelli is sworn in as a new senator next January, he won’t get a few days or even a few minutes to learn the lay of the land.

He’ll have to help run the show.

Riccelli, a former six-term House member who easily won central Spokane’s 3rd District Senate seat earlier this month, was named the chamber’s majority floor leader in a meeting of the Democratic Caucus this week.

He’ll have a say on what legislation is scheduled for debate on a particular day, manage the time for debate and discussion, and keep an ear open for anything the minority Republicans might bring up that majority Democrats find objectionable.

It’s a job that often goes to a seasoned legislator familiar with the intricacies of Senate rules. Riccelli said he was highly honored his new colleagues think he can do the job.

“I’m humbled by it, for sure,” he said in a phone interview Friday.

His goal is to manage action on the floor in a way that promotes good discussion, debate and civility.

Riccelli is the only Democrat in the Senate from east of the Cascades, and having a freshman in the chamber’s majority had some in Spokane worrying about the area’s loss of clout.

For all but five of the last 21 years, a senator representing at least a part of the Spokane area has held the Senate majority leader’s post, even as the majority changed hands. Republican Jim West held it in 2003, followed by Democrat Lisa Brown from 2005 to 2012, Republican Mark Schoesler from 2014 to 2017 and Democrat Andy Billig, whom Riccelli is replacing, from 2019 until the end of this year.

Riccelli doesn’t come to the job as a complete novice. He served as majority whip for six years during his tenure in the House, and filled in as House majority floor leader during the pandemic sessions when that person was kept away because of restrictions on the number of lawmakers allowed in the chamber.

There are differences in rules and traditions between the two chambers. He knows he’ll have to rely on his predecessor, Sen. Jamie Pedersen of Seattle, as well as other senior leaders and caucus staff for information and advice navigating those. But being named to a top leadership spot gives Riccelli – and through him, his constituents, Spokane and the rest of the Inland Northwest – a “seat at the table” where decisions are made on issues to pursue and legislation to address them, he said.

It also shows Senate Democrats want that perspective in that process, he added

Among the issues Riccelli sees as key local concerns are job creation, housing and public safety. While they may be on many legislators’ lists on both sides of the state, he said, specifics might vary.

One area of job creation important to the Spokane area is expanding opportunities for behavioral health and primary care to include more physician’s assistants as well as new doctors. On housing, he’d like to see more opportunities to convert commercial buildings to residential units, with more emphasis on starter, affordable and “workforce” housing as opposed to high-end units. In working on public safety, he wants to make sure law enforcement officers have the tools they need while remaining accountable to the public.

Sitting just across the aisle – literally as well as figuratively, if the traditional seating of floor leaders holds true – is likely to be another Spokane-area legislator, Sen. Shelly Short, R-Addy, as Republican floor leader.

Senate Republicans don’t choose their leaders until December, but Short is running for the job. While she’s not taking her re-election for granted, she has no announced opposition and is contacting her colleagues to nail down support.

“I’m looking forward to working with him,” Short said, noting that they have a long history of working together. Years ago, they were both congressional aides, her to then-Congressman George Nethercutt and him to U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell. They also served together in the state House for several years before Short moved to the Senate in 2017.

“He and I have had really productive conversations,” she said.

Naming a newly elected senator to the floor leader’s spot is a bit of a surprise, she said, but it may be partly a sign of changes in the Democratic caucus. Along with Billig’s retirement, the deputy majority leader, Sen. Emily Randall, is leaving after successfully running for a U.S. House seat in Congress. Pedersen, who as floor leader was next in line, moved up to majority leader.

Because change is fairly constant in the Legislature, Short said one of the things that make matters run smoothly is the relationships lawmakers forge, regardless of party.