View Scorecard for Year
Responsive Gov’s Grade TL;DR
Once again, the Washington State Legislature enacted new pro-voter election reforms. This year’s reforms focused on expanding the reach of the state’s secure automatic voter registration system and implementing additional safety measures to guard against both physical and electronic threats to the state’s election infrastructure. However, the Legislature once again failed to advance a bill to consolidate election days that would save election officials significant time and money and improve convenience for voters. Nevertheless, because of their continued expansion of both voting rights and election security, Washington received an A- on their progress report.
Looking Back
Where Washington Started at the Beginning of 2025
- Automatic Voter Registration: Secure AVR
- Online Voter Registration: OVR+
- Same-Day Registration: Yes
- Restoration of Rights: Felony Disenfranchisement
- Vote by Mail: Vote by Mail
- Electronic Registration Information Center Member: Yes
- Early Voting Opportunities: Regular Ballot Early Voting
- ID Requirements: ID Requested, but not Required
Relying on the Cost of Voting Index for Washington as of 2024, we considered the state a top tier state for pre-existing voting policy and compared its 2025 activity against other top tier states.
How Our Tier Compares
2025: This Past Year
Legislative Action
The Washington State Legislature enacted additional pro-voter reforms during the past session.
- SB 5077 expands the state’s existing Secure AVR system to the health benefit exchange and additional state agencies the governor deems appropriate. It also allows tribal nation agencies to participate in AVR if they wish.
- SB 5014 institutes additional security measures to ensure the state’s election and voting infrastructure remain protected against both physical and electronic threats. The bill requires the secretary of state to approve all vote systems used prior to primary and general elections, requires counties to implement additional cybersecurity measures, and requires manufacturers and distributors of voter registration database systems to immediately disclose any security breaches that are discovered.