OLYMPIA - Sen. Judy Warnick, R-Moses Lake, was promoted to vice chair of the Senate majority caucus on Monday.

As vice chair, Warnick’s duties will include assisting the Caucus Chair Sen. Randi Becker, R-Eatonville, run caucus meetings and coordinate some of their activities. The majority coalition caucus is made up of 25 members, 24 Republicans and one Democrat who votes with the Republicans.

“Running a caucus is similar to herding cats or wild kittens,” Warnick said. “We all have different ideas and different roles for our districts.”

In this new role Warnick will be included on the caucus leadership meetings with the Majority Coalition Caucus leader Sen. Mark Schoesler, R-Ritzville, and the Caucus Chair Sen. Becker, the Majority floor leader Sen. Joe Fain, R-Auburn, and the Majority Whip Sen. Barbara Bailey, R-Oak Harbor.

This new role will be a significant time increase, but Warnick feels being included in the high level Senate leadership meetings is worth extra work.

“It doesn’t put me right on top,” she said. “But it does put me in the room.”

She will also be more involved in the caucus-wide policy efforts and be involved in the capitol budget process. When Warnick was in the House, she was vice caucus chair and moved up to caucus chair toward the end of her time there.

“It takes a lot to bring folks together with different districts and different ideas about how things should be run and come together so we present a unified front,” Warnick said. “That’s the goal.” 

She will continue in her role as the chair of the Agriculture, Water, Trade and Economic Development Committee, which was merged from the Agriculture, Water Development and the Trade and Economic Development committee into a much larger group during the interim. She will also be a member of the Ways and Means and Early Learning and K-12 Education committees.

She also has cosponsored or written several bills involving the transport of oil over railroads, modifying tax credits for the Washington Main Street program and paid family leave, which should be introduced into committees during the coming weeks.