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Voting history · Washington

Washington

A dated list of changes to how Americans vote: district maps, polling places and drop boxes, voting laws and rules, and courts and election officials. Each entry says who did what and when, shows what became of it, and links to the page it rests on. Attempts that failed are listed as failed. Entries that rest on a news report name the outlet.

This is the state view: events recorded for Washington, then national events that apply here. See the national timeline.

Congressional districts in Washington

Choose a district to see the events tagged to it. A number after the district is how many events name it.

Kind of event
Decade

In Washington

2024

  1. Mar 15, 2024 State Maps and lines Enacted

    Federal court orders a remedial legislative map for the Yakima Valley

    On March 15, 2024 the Soto Palmer district court ordered a new map in which the previously enacted LD 15 was reconfigured and redesignated LD 14. The Ninth Circuit's opinion says the court imposed an adjusted version of the plaintiffs' Map 3A after the commission declined to draw a remedial district.

    Related: Federal court finds Legislative District 15 violates Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act · Ninth Circuit affirms in part and dismisses in part appeals over the Yakima Valley map

    Source last checked Oct 20, 2026

2022

  1. Feb 8, 2022 State Maps and lines Enacted

    Legislature adopts the redistricting plan, including Legislative District 15

    A court filing by the State records that the Commission unanimously approved a legislative map on November 16, 2021, that the Legislature made minor amendments, and that on February 8, 2022 it passed House Concurrent Resolution 4407 adopting the amended plan, which became state law.

    Related: Federal court finds Legislative District 15 violates Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act · Washington Supreme Court declines to take over redistricting after the commission tells it the deadline could not be met

    Source last checked Oct 20, 2026

2021

  1. Dec 3, 2021 State Maps and lines Decided by a court

    Washington Supreme Court declines to take over redistricting after the commission tells it the deadline could not be met

    On November 16, 2021 the chair of the Washington State Redistricting Commission wrote to the Washington Supreme Court that the commission had been unable to adopt a plan by its November 15 deadline and was ceding responsibility to the court; the Associated Press reported that the commission had missed the deadline. In Order No. 25700-B-676 of December 3, 2021, the court accepted the chair's sworn declaration and found that the commission voted to approve a congressional plan at 11:59:28 p.m. and a legislative plan at 11:59:47 p.m. on November 15, 2021, which met the constitutional deadline, and that it failed to transmit the plan to the legislature by the statutory deadline. The court concluded the commission "substantially complied with the statutory deadline," declined to adopt a plan itself, and returned the matter to the commission to finish its work.

    Related: Legislature adopts the redistricting plan, including Legislative District 15

    Source last checked Oct 21, 2026

Nationwide

2026

  1. Sep 10, 2026 National Maps and lines Proposed

    Census Bureau proposes residence criteria for the 2030 census that would exclude some noncitizens from the apportionment count

    On September 10, 2026 the Census Bureau, an agency of the Department of Commerce, published a proposed rule in the Federal Register (91 FR 57524, Docket No. 260903-0005, RIN 0607-AA75) that would add two new parts to the Code of Federal Regulations: residence criteria for the decennial census, and standards and restrictions for demographic questions on the census questionnaire. On residence, the notice states that "the Census Bureau proposes to include lawful permanent residents within the apportionment base, while excluding from the apportionment base illegal aliens and aliens whose legal status is less durable and indefinite in length than lawful permanent resident status," and says it is considering using administrative records to determine legal status. The comment period, first set to end October 13, 2026, was extended to November 2, 2026 by a notice published October 5, 2026. Al Jazeera and CNBC reported on the proposal, and CNBC reported that opponents expect litigation.

    Source last checked Oct 22, 2026

2021

  1. Aug 12, 2021 National Maps and lines Settled

    Census Bureau releases 2020 redistricting data for states

    On August 12, 2021, the Census Bureau released the 2020 Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171) Summary File, which it described as delivering data for states to begin redistricting. On September 16, 2021, it released the same data in an easier-to-use format on data.census.gov and delivered a toolkit to states.

    Source last checked Oct 22, 2026

  2. Apr 26, 2021 National Maps and lines Settled

    Census Bureau announces 2020 Census apportionment results

    On April 26, 2021, the Census Bureau announced that the 2020 Census resident population of the United States on April 1, 2020 was 331,449,281, and that Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo delivered the population counts used for apportionment of the U.S. House to the President.

    Source last checked Oct 20, 2026

1967

  1. Dec 14, 1967 National Maps and lines Enacted

    Congress requires single-member congressional districts (Public Law 90-196)

    Public Law 90-196, approved December 14, 1967, provides that in each state entitled to more than one Representative "there shall be established by law a number of districts equal to the number of Representatives to which such State is so entitled," with "no district to elect more than one Representative."

    Source last checked Oct 20, 2026

How this timeline is built

Every entry rests on at least one source that was opened and read, and that source states the date and the fact. Courts, legislatures, election offices, the Justice Department, the Census Bureau, the Federal Register and Congress.gov come first. A news report is used only when no official page states the fact, and it is labeled with the outlet's name. Encyclopedias are not used as sources. History starts in 1965 with the Voting Rights Act. County names come from the Census Bureau's 2024 Gazetteer. Congressional district numbers are those in use for the 2026 election; an event is tagged to a district only when its source names that congressional district.

When a later event changes an earlier one, such as a law later struck down, both entries are listed and point to each other. This page does not predict outcomes or say which party a change helps. U.S. House maps for 2026 · Back to the 2026 voting center.