Washington To Elect First New State Insurance Commissioner in Over 20 Years

Washington state residents will vote to elect a new state insurance commissioner for the first time in 24 years on Nov. 5. Eight candidates are on the ballot for the Aug. 6 primary election.

Mike Kriedler, the commissioner since 2000, announced in May 2023 that he wouldn’t seek re-election.

In 2022, Kriedler faced calls for resignation from Gov. Jay Inslee and other legislative leaders following accusations from former and prospective employees that he used racist, demeaning, and offensive language.

In a May 2023 email to his staff, Kriedler wrote, “It’s time for someone else to step forward and carry on this agency’s important consumer protection work.” At the end of his current term, he will have served six terms as Washington’s state insurance commissioner.

How the insurance commissioner affects Washington residents

As in many other states, Washington’s insurance commissioner approves or rejects insurance company requests to raise rates or make changes to how they do business in the state. The commissioner can disapprove unfair, unjust, or deceptive insurance forms and coverage with excessive rates.

Washington residents pay lower-than-average auto insurance rates compared to the national average, but premiums climbed 25% between 2022 and 2023, according to Insurify data. The state’s average home insurance rate is also relatively low, at about $1,430 per year, according to an Insurify report. The next commissioner will be tasked with finding a way to keep rates low.

The insurance commissioner regulates the state’s insurance industry and is charged with protecting insurance consumers. The commissioner oversees insurance companies, including those in the property, casualty, and health insurance markets, to ensure they follow the rules and provide customers with the coverage they paid for.

The office of the commissioner in Washington has consumer insurance experts who can help answer questions from residents regarding insurance rights and other specific information. The criminal investigations unit (CIU) looks for and investigates people and organizations who may be committing insurance fraud.

The office regulates the state’s insurance industries in several ways, including issuing licenses for insurance producers and companies, providing corporate and financial oversight for insurance companies, reviewing insurance products, filing legislation to protect consumers, and more.

What’s next? Meet the candidates

The non-partisan primary election for Washington’s insurance commissioner is on Aug. 6. Eight candidates are running.

Washington uses a top-two primary system, so the two candidates with the most votes in the primary will advance to the Nov. 5 general election.

Here’s what you should know about each candidate on the primary ballot:

Bill Boyd, a Democrat, owns Boyd Insurance Brokerage in Spokane and has 30 years of experience working in the insurance industry. His policy focuses include lowering auto and home insurance costs and privatizing Washington’s workers’ compensation system.

Chris Chung, running as a Democrat, is a pharmacist who owns Chung Pharmacy in Lakewood.

A Washington state senator since 2017, Republican Phil Fortunato of Auburn told The Spokesman-Review he’d work to support property rights and Second Amendment protection groups if elected to the office. He supports privatized health insurance systems.

Based in Seattle, Jonathan Hendrix has 30 years of experience in the health insurance space, primarily at an executive level and most recently at Premera Blue Cross of Washington. Running without a declared party, Hendrix’s campaign website includes three priorities: affordability, choices in the market, and customer experience.

Patty Kuderer, a Democrat in Bellevue, has been a state senator since 2017. She’s running for insurance commissioner with a focus on universal health care, access to reproductive care, gun insurance, climate change insurance for homeowners and businesses, and more.

Justin Murta, a Libertarian, is a senior vice president at Acrisure, an insurance brokerage. On his Facebook page, Murta claims to have 20 years of experience in the insurance industry and says he will focus on making insurance more affordable if elected.

John Pestinger, a Democrat in Seattle, is a project manager at the Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner, where he deals with insurance regulation. He also has past experience in the insurance industry and told The Spokesman-Review that not making changes and stabilizing the insurance market can help bring rates down.

Tim Verzal, a retired auto body mechanic from Eatonville, is running as an independent. Verzal told The Spokesman-Review that he’s running because he’s come across many who can’t afford expensive insurance premiums and is tired of officials in the government permitting insurers to charge higher rates.

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