Kent City Councilmember Bill Boyce will challenge incumbent Sen. Mona Das, D-Kent, for the 47th District legislative seat.
Boyce, a Kent Republican, is the first Black man to serve on the City Council. If elected next year, he would be the first Black senator from the 47th District, according to a Dec. 4 email to announce his campaign.
“As a child I attended a racially segregated school,” said Boyce, who was born and raised in North Carolina. “In my lifetime we’ve seen so much progress on extending the American dream to everyone. I would be honored if voters would join me in making history in the 47th District and continuing that progress.”
Das announced Dec. 3 that she is running for a second four-year term. She barely defeated Republican incumbent Joe Fain in 2018.
Boyce served as an Army Airborne Ranger (stationed at Fort Lewis), and after earning a bachelor’s degree and moving to Kent in 1984, he served on the Kent School Board for over 16 years, and has been on the City Council for 10 years. He was first elected to the council in 2011 when he defeated incumbent Debbie Raplee who had served eight years on the council. He resigned from the school board after winning the council seat.
Boyce ran unopposed for the council in 2015 and defeated Mizan Rahman in 2019. He lost a council race in 2003 when he challenged Les Thomas.
“I have always listened to the concerns of those I represent, from the school board to the city council,” Boyce said. “And I’m hearing a lot of people right now tell me they are not happy with the direction our Legislature has taken recently.”
Boyce said massive tax increases that target middle- and low-income families, an insurance scheme that is essentially a backdoor income tax, police reform that went too far, and a complete disregard of parental concerns are at the top of the list of worries of people in the 47th District.
“When they choose me as their senator, voters can count on me to be fiscally responsible, socially conscious, and always hear them out,” Boyce said. “That’s a contrast to what we have in Olympia right now.”
Boyce was the first civilian at-large to serve on the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission when he was appointed by Democrat Gov. Gary Locke in 2002. He also served as the Commissioner of the Criminal Justice Training Center and is on the Board of Trustees for Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.
Boyce is a human resources leader at Boeing and has worked for the company in various roles for over 30 years.
Boyce and his wife, Debbie, have lived in the 47th District for more than three decades. They raised their five children here and now their grandchildren are growing up close to home.
For more information, visit VoteBillBoyce.com.
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