Gracious in victory, Mona Das looks forward to getting to work.
The Democrat challenger from Covington pulled off a surprising win in the Nov. 6 general election, upending two-term state Sen. Joe Fain, R-Auburn, for the 47th Legislative District seat.
Fain conceded the race last Friday night.
Das, who finished nearly 8 points behind Fain in the August primary, had a 769-vote cushion in the latest general election tally from King County Elections on Tuesday.
Final election results will be certified Nov. 30.
The win humbles Das.
“I am so proud of this campaign,” she said in an email statement. “We placed a diverse set of people and ideas at the forefront of our message. … I can’t thank the people of the 47th District enough. It means the world to me that you’ve entrusted me to be your state senator.”
Das’ agenda emphasizes helping people who struggle to meet basic needs.
“We have a full-blown affordability crisis in South King County, and I am going to do everything I can to work towards affordable health care and housing and higher wage jobs,” she sad.
“As a small business owner who works with families buying their first home, I have seen first hand how big property tax increases are distressing many in our communities, even as our schools struggle to make ends meet,” Das said. “We can make this economy work better and make government work better for families. We can do more to create jobs, ease traffic congestion and make housing affordable.”
Born in India, Mona Das immigrated to the United States with her family when she was 8 months old, and her family had only $6 in its collective pocket. In the teeth of hardships, Das attended graduate school.
In 2004, Das said, she started her own mortgage business, and thereafter devoted her energies to empowering and teaching first-time homebuyers. In 2009, she attended Pinchot University, from which she graduated with an MBA in sustainable business. She has been a member of the board of the Women’s Business Exchange and the Women’s Network for a Sustainable future.
“(My family) lives that American hope and dream of promise, and that’s one thing that drives me every day: to give back to the community and the country that helped my family thrive,” Das said.
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