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Committee hears bill to clarify prohibition on voting more than once
Summary
The committee heard Senate Bill 6084 to clarify that a person may not vote more than once in the same election date in Washington or in both Washington and another state, addressing an appellate ruling that the term 'election' was ambiguous.
Senate Bill 6084, presented to the State Government, Tribal Affairs, and Elections Committee on Jan. 27, 2026, would clarify that a person may not vote more than once in Washington state or vote in Washington and another state when the ballots fall on the same election date regardless of differing candidates or measures.
Greg Vogel, committee staff, summarized the bill and said the Washington Court of Appeals’ decision in State v. Pederta interpreted 'election' narrowly to mean a contest with the same slate of races, creating ambiguity that the bill would resolve. "They applied the rule of lenity," Vogel said, describing the appellate court’s approach.
Prime sponsor Sen. Adrian Cortez (18th Legislative District) told the committee the measure restores what he called common-sense election integrity: "If you live here, you vote here, you don't get to vote anywhere else." Brian Hatfield, legislative director for Secretary of State Steve Hobbs, testified in support and said the bill "clears up the ambiguity" that had undercut prosecutions.
No formal amendments or votes took place at the hearing. The record shows a large number of public sign-ins (54 pro, 67 con not testifying). The committee closed the hearing on SB 6084 and will decide on possible next steps in a later work schedule.
