Washington: Law and government

The Washington State Capitol in Olympia.

The bicameral Washington State Legislature is the state's legislative branch. The state legislature is composed of a lower House of Representatives and an upper State Senate. The state is divided into 49 legislative districts of equal population, each of which elects two representatives and one senator. Representatives serve two-year terms, whilst senators serve for four years. There are no term limits. Currently, the Democratic Party holds majorities in both chambers.

Washington's executive branch is headed by a governor elected for a four-year term. The current governor is Christine Gregoire, a Democrat who has been in office since 2005.

The Washington Supreme Court is the highest court in the state. Nine justices serve on the bench and are elected statewide.

U.S. Congress

See also: United States congressional delegations from Washington

The two U.S. Senators from Washington are Patty Murray (D) and Maria Cantwell (D).

Washington representatives in the United States House of Representatives (see map of districts) are Jay Inslee (D-1), Richard Ray (Rick) Larsen (D-2), Brian Baird (D-3), Doc Hastings (R-4), Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-5), Norm Dicks (D-6), Jim McDermott (D-7), Dave Reichert (R-8), and Adam Smith (D-9).

State elected officials

Executive

• Christine Gregoire, Governor (D)
• Brad Owen, Lieutenant Governor (D)
• Sam Reed, Secretary of State (R)
• Rob McKenna, Attorney General (R)
• Jim McIntire, State Treasurer (D)
• Brian Sonntag, State Auditor (D)
• Randy Dorn, Superintendent of Public Instruction (non-partisan office)
• Peter J. Goldmark, Commissioner of Public Lands (D)
• Mike Kreidler, Insurance Commissioner (D)

Politics

See also: Political party strength in Washington

Presidential elections results

Year	Republican	Democratic
2008	40.48% 1,229,216	57.65% 1,750,848
2004	45.59% 1,304,893	52.82% 1,510,201
2000	44.59% 1,108,864	50.21% 1,247,652
1996	37.32% 840,712	49.81% 1,123,323
1992	31.99% 731,234	43.41% 993,037
1988	47.97% 903,835	50.03% 933,516

The state has been thought of as politically divided by the Cascade Mountains, with Western Washington being liberal (particularly the I-5 Corridor) and Eastern Washington being conservative. Lately however, Washington has voted for the Democratic presidential nominee in every election since 1988. Spokane, the state's second largest city located in Eastern Washington, has been leaning more liberal, with one example being Democrat Maria Cantwell winning by a wide margin in the 2006 senate race against Republican Mike McGavick. Since the population is larger in the west, the Democrats usually fare better statewide. More specifically, the Seattle metro area (especially King County) generally delivers strong Democratic margins, while the outlying areas of Western Washington were nearly tied in both 2000 and 2004. It was considered a key swing state in 1968, and it was the only Western state to give its electoral votes to Democratic nominee Hubert Humphrey over his Republican opponent Richard Nixon. However, Washington was considered a part of the 1994 Republican Revolution, and had the biggest pickup in the house for Republicans, making 7 of the 9 house members Republicans for the state of Washington.^[41] However, this dominance did not last for long as Democrats picked up one seat in the 1996 election^[42] and two more in 1998, giving the Democrats a 5–4 majority.^[43]

The two current United States Senators from Washington are Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell, both of whom are members of the Democratic Party. The office of Governor is held by Christine Gregoire, who was re-elected to her second term in the 2008 gubernatorial election. Washington is the first and only state in the country to have elected women to both of its United States Senate seats and the office of Governor. Both houses of the Washington State Legislature (the Washington Senate and the Washington House of Representatives) are currently controlled by the Democratic Party.

Mumbai - Politics

First session of the Indian National Congress in Bombay (28–31 December 1885)

Bombay has been a traditional stronghold and birthplace of the Indian National Congress, also known as the Congress Party.^[154] The first session of the Indian National Congress was held in Bombay from 28–31 December 1885.^[155] The city played host to the Indian National Congress six times during its first 50 years, and became a strong base for the Indian independence movement during the 20th century.^[156] The 1960s saw the rise of regionalist politics in Bombay, with the formation of the Shiv Sena on 19 June 1966, out of a feeling of resentment about the relative marginalisation of the native Marathi people in Maharashtra.^[157] The party headed a campaign to expel South Indian and North Indian migrants by force.^[158] The Congress had dominated the politics of Bombay from independence until the early 1980s, when the Shiv Sena won the 1985 Bombay municipal corporation elections.^[159] In 1989, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), a major national political party, forged an electoral alliance with the Shiv Sena to dislodge the Congress in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly elections. In 1999, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) separated from the Congress, but later allied with the Congress, to form a joint venture known as the Democratic Front.^[160] Currently, other parties such as Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), Samajwadi Party (SP), Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), and several independent candidates also contest elections in the city.^[161]

In the Indian national elections held every five years, Mumbai is represented by six parliamentary constituencies: Mumbai North, Mumbai North West, Mumbai North East, Mumbai North Central, Mumbai South Central, and Mumbai South.^[162] A Member of Parliament (MP) to the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Indian Parliament, is elected from each of the parliamentary constituencies. In the 2009 national elections, out of the six parliamentary constituencies, five were won by the Congress, and one by the NCP.^[163] In the Maharashtra state assembly elections held every five years, Mumbai is represented by 36 assembly constituencies.^[164] A Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) to the Maharashtra Vidhan Sabha (Legislative Assembly) is elected from each of the assembly constituencies. In the 2009 state assembly elections, out of the 36 assembly constituencies, 17 were won by the Congress, 6 by the MNS, 5 by the BJP, 4 by the Shiv Sena, and 1 by SP. [1][2] [3]^[165] Elections are also held every five years to elect corporators to power in the BMC.^[166] The Corporation comprises 227 directly elected Councillors representing the 24 municipal wards, five nominated Councillors having special knowledge or experience in municipal administration, and a Mayor whose role is mostly ceremonial.^{[167][168][169]} In the 2007 municipal corporation elections, out of the 227 seats, the Shiv Sena-BJP alliance secured 111 seats, holding power in the BMC, while the Congress-NCP alliance bagged 85 seats.^[170] The tenure of the Mayor, Deputy Mayor, and Municipal Commissioner is two and a half years.