News

OLYMPIA — Signature verification has been completed and certified by the Office of the Secretary of State for the following Initiative to the People:

The signatures have been verified by the Office of the Secretary of State Elections Division using a state-mandated process of examining a 3% random sample of submitted signatures. Sponsors of I-2066 submitted 533,005 signatures in support of the initiative. A review of the random sample of 15,991 signatures found that 12,960… Read more

OLYMPIA — The Washington state Office of the Secretary of State (OSOS) has invested in a large-scale campaign to highlight the safety and security of the state’s vote-by-mail process ahead of Washington’s August primary and November general election. Created with agency partner Happylucky, the campaign uses stylized, rooted-in-place imagery and animation to promote the integrity of a process that has enabled accessible and secure voting throughout Washington for more than a decade. This campaign’s positive messaging helps all Washington voters understand how vote-by-mail works, celebrate… Read more

OLYMPIA — Washington’s county elections offices will mail ballots by Friday and open official ballot drop boxes for the more than 4.8 million registered voters across Washington to participate in the August 6 Primary Election.

Ballots must be returned to a county drop box or voting center by 8 p.m. Aug. 6, or, if mailed using the postage-paid envelope included with every ballot, postmarked by Aug. 6 to be accepted. The U.S. Postal Service recommends mailing… Read more

OLYMPIA — Secretary of State Steve Hobbs has been elected the Treasurer of the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS), the nation’s oldest nonpartisan professional organization for elected officials.

Secretary Steve Hobbs was sworn in Friday, July 12, at the NASS 2024 Summer Conference in Puerto Rico.

Founded in 1904, NASS includes secretaries of state, lieutenant governors, and chief state election officials from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S.… Read more

OLYMPIA — The Washington State Archives announced this week that $537,759 will be distributed among 27 local government agencies through the Local Records Grant Program.

The Local Records Grant Program of the Washington State Archives, a division of the Office of the Secretary of State, helps local government agencies upgrade technological resources for records management and better respond to requests for public records. Since its inception in 2005, the program has awarded… Read more

New digital document program enables quicker delivery and secure authentication of documents for use abroad

OLYMPIA — The Office of the Secretary of State has issued its first digital apostille to authenticate a document as part of a pilot program with the City University of Seattle and @Gov, Inc., a Virginia-based company.

An apostille is an authentication, similar to notarization, issued to documents for use in countries participating in the 1961 Hague Convention treaty that… Read more

OLYMPIA — Secretary of State Steve Hobbs joined community members and staff to play Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) in Camas Monday to celebrate the debut of Camas Public Library’s D&D programming.

The D&D library kit being used was one of more than 50 donated to Washington’s… Read more

OLYMPIA — A statement from Secretary of State Steve Hobbs:

“My office has received numerous media inquiries on whether RCW 29A.68.020 can be applied to the election of a president of the United States. Although any such determination would have to be made by a court, I do not believe states can add to the requirements set in the U.S. Constitution for candidates for president.

“Additionally,… Read more

OLYMPIA — Secretary of State Steve Hobbs and 12 staff members of the Office of the Secretary of State were awarded Quilts of Valor at the state Capitol in Olympia Thursday for their military service.

Quilts of Valor volunteers award quilts to current and former members of the U.S. military to provide comfort and healing in recognition of their dedication and sacrifice. The organization has member groups nationwide.

Secretary Hobbs enlisted in the U.S. Army as a private in 1987 and rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel… Read more

OLYMPIA — The Productivity Board, a state employee incentive program of the Office of the Secretary of State, voted unanimously Thursday to award two state employees up to $200 each for their ideas to save the state money.

The Productivity Board encourages all state employees to help save taxpayers' money by offering up to $10,000 for a successful employee proposal to increase government efficiency. First created by the Legislature in 1982, the Productivity Board saved the state… Read more