Simon Sefzik to replace late Sen. Doug Ericksen in Senate

OLYMPIA — Simon Sefzik of Ferndale has been named to replace the late Republican Sen. Doug Ericksen in the Washington Senate.

Sefzik took the oath of office Tuesday following a 4-2 vote by the Whatcom County Council and will serve the remainder of Ericksen’s term representing the 42nd District through the next general election in November.

At 22, Sefzik is the youngest current senator, according to a state Senate Republican spokesperson.

Sefzik was appointed by the Whatcom County Council from names forwarded by the Whatcom County Republican Party. Under state law, when a vacancy occurs in a partisan office, local parties submit three names for consideration by county governing bodies, which make the final selection.

Sefzik is a recent graduate of Patrick Henry College, a conservative Christian school in northeast Virginia.

He most recently worked as an operations and logistics coordinator for Nomi Health in Denver, according to Sefzik’s resume provided to the county council. Sefzik’s resume also shows he worked in different capacities for the White House from 2020 to 2021 and the U.S. House of Representatives in 2019.

Ericksen, 52, died in December, weeks after he said he had tested positive for COVID-19 while in El Salvador. No information has been released about where he died or whether Ericksen died of COVID-19.