Federal Way City Council President Linda Kochmar announced Feb. 2 she is running for the 30th District state Senate seat.

Voters elected Kochmar to the Federal Way City Council in November 2019. Previously, Kochmar served one year as the mayor of Federal Way in 2010, was voted Federal Way deputy mayor twice, and was elected as a 30th District state representative in 2012.

“I think if I’m going to get to the root causes of some of the things that are happening here, I need to go to the Legislature to be a say in fixing [them],” Kochmar said on a Feb. 2 phone call with the Mirror. “I think I can be a voice of reason, of common sense.”

Kochmar is running as a Republican. She has lived in Federal Way since 1970.

With over two decades of service in public office, Kochmar said she is “deeply concerned about crime that is affecting our businesses and neighborhoods, drug addiction that is fueling our homeless population, and higher taxes burdening our families,” according to her Feb. 2 announcement.

The 30th Legislative District includes Federal Way, Algona, Pacific and Milton.

Kochmar said her Senate campaign will focus on public safety, securing treatment beds for individuals with drug addictions and affordable housing.

The seat is currently held by Sen. Claire Wilson, former Federal Way School Board president. Wilson was elected to the Senate in 2018.

The city council can only do so much when it comes to crime prevention and reduction due to the police reform laws, Kochmar said.

“The people will come to the council and say ‘you’ve got to do something,’ but the real problem is in the Legislature. We’ve got to change the laws,” Kochmar said.

If she does leave the council, Kochmar said she feels confident she is leaving it in capable hands of the current and newly elected members.