Bob Ferguson

DemocratGovernor of Washington

Age	61 (b. 1965-02-23)
Gender	Male
In office since	2025-01-01 (~1 yrs)
Race / ethnicity	White (Irish, Scottish, and German ancestry)
Religion	Catholic; raised Catholic, attended Bishop Blanchet High School (a Catholic school) and served in Jesuit Volunteer Corps Northwest after college
Education	BA in political science, University of Washington (1989), where he was student body president; JD, New York University School of Law (1995). Graduated Bishop Blanchet High School (1983).
Prior occupation	Attorney/litigator at Preston Gates & Ellis (now K&L Gates); clerked for federal judges; volunteer with Jesuit Volunteer Corps Northwest
Military service	No
Birthplace	Seattle, Washington
Marital status	Married — Colleen Ferguson
Children	2
Residence	Washington Governor's Mansion, Olympia, Washington (longtime Seattle resident)

Wikipedia

Pending research: languages · notable relatives · openly lgbtq.

Career & politics

First elected	2003
Previous offices	King County Council member (2004-2013), including Chair of the Council (2009-2013) · Washington State Attorney General (2013-2025)
Leadership	Chair, King County Council (2009-2013) · 24th Governor of Washington (2025-present)
Ideology	Progressive Democrat; as Attorney General known for gun-control measures, reproductive rights, consumer protection, and filing 97 lawsuits against the first Trump administration
Signature legislation	Led Washington's litigation against the first Trump administration travel ban (Executive Order 13769), winning the first federal injunction · Advocated and helped enact Washington's assault weapons ban (2023) and high-capacity magazine ban as Attorney General · Secured major consumer protection settlements (e.g., Comcast, Providence Health, Johnson & Johnson opioids) as Attorney General

Financial

No holdings recorded yet (from official Financial Disclosure filings).

Scandals & crimes ledger

resolved — Court-ordered discovery-violation sanctions and bar complaint in Emily Tobin lawsuit (as Attorney General)

obstruction-perjury · 2023-05-19 · While Ferguson served as Washington Attorney General, his office and the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) were sued by Emily Tobin, a woman with developmental disabilities who alleged she was neglected and abused after being placed by the state in an adult family home. During discovery, the Attorney General's Office withheld roughly 11,000 pages of records relevant to the case while seeking to have the suit dismissed. On May 19, 2023, King County Superior Court Judge Michael K. Ryan ruled the delay was a 'willful violation' of discovery obligations that was 'egregious, severe, without excuse,' and ordered the Attorney General's Office and DSHS to pay $200,000 in punitive sanctions to the King County Sexual Assault Resource Center, plus roughly $122,555 in Tobin's attorney costs and fees. On June 5, 2023, Ferguson's office announced a separate $3.125 million settlement (plus a $15,000 guardian ad litem fee) with Tobin to resolve the underlying claims. In May 2024, former attorney Anne Block filed a Washington State Bar Association (WSBA) complaint alleging Ferguson personally failed to ensure his office's lawyers complied with professional conduct rules. On April 18, 2025, the WSBA closed the complaint, writing that insufficient evidence existed to prove unethical conduct by Ferguson given the size of the Attorney General's Office and the distance of the misconduct from his direct supervision. · Court imposed a $200,000 punitive sanction against the AG's office/DSHS for willful discovery violations; state separately paid a $3.125 million settlement to the plaintiff; a follow-on WSBA ethics complaint against Ferguson personally was closed in 2025 with no finding of unethical conduct.

A King County judge sanctioned the Attorney General's Office (led by Ferguson) $200,000 for willful withholding of discovery in a neglect lawsuit, on top of a $3.125 million settlement; a subsequent bar complaint targeting Ferguson personally was later closed for insufficient evidence of misconduct.

Sources: The Seattle Times · The Columbian · Prison Legal News · The Center Square

resolved — Executive Ethics Board settlement over former aide's flight on state aircraft

ethics-violation · 2025-06-26 · Washington State Executive Ethics Board · Stipulated settlement; Ferguson agreed to pay a $4,000 civil penalty ($2,000 suspended contingent on no ethics violations for two years). The board had earlier (January 9, 2026) found 'reasonable cause' to believe Ferguson violated state ethics law by providing a special privilege/benefit to a non-employee. Ferguson did not formally admit wrongdoing.

On June 26, 2025, Governor Bob Ferguson allowed Mike Webb, his former chief strategy officer who had resigned in March 2025 and taken a job with a private law firm, to fly on a Washington State Patrol aircraft during an official trip to the Tri-Cities that included a political fundraiser. A complaint was filed July 30, 2025. On January 9, 2026 the Washington State Executive Ethics Board voted unanimously that there was reasonable cause to believe Ferguson violated state ethics law by providing a special benefit to a non-state employee. On April 30, 2026 the board approved a stipulated settlement in which Ferguson agreed to pay a $4,000 civil penalty (half suspended) to avoid a public enforcement hearing. Ferguson did not admit wrongdoing.

Sources: Washington State Standard · The Spokesman-Review · KUOW · KOMO News