Representative Tom Dent announces reelection bid

MOSES LAKE — Representative Tom Dent, R-Moses Lake, has announced he will run for reelection in 2026. It would be Dent’s seventh term in the Washington House of Representatives if he’s reelected.

Dent said he’s third in seniority in the House Republican Caucus and about 15th in seniority in the entire House. That does and will make a difference, he said.

“Seniority is everything in the legislature. When you have seniority, you get so much more done,” he said. “Every year it gets a little easier.”

Dent said he plans to keep on serving as long as he remains in good health, voters reelect him and he believes he can be effective.

“I’m not tired of it, either,” he said.

He’s a member of the Early Learning and Human Resources committee, which helps set state policy on foster care, early learning, youth mental health and Child Protective Services. One of his projects, if he’s reelected, would be to encourage an audit of the state’s daycare system. There have been allegations of fraud, and Dent said they should be investigated.

“Is there a lot of fraud? I don’t know, but we need to take a look,” he said.

Dent is the ranking Republican member on the Rural Development, Ag and Natural Resources committee, which oversees water issues and policies in the House, as well as agriculture policy and issues, among many other things.

One of Dent’s initiatives in the 2026 legislative session was a bill to allow local fire districts to access aerial firefighting assets in a more timely manner. He founded the House Wildfire Caucus and is its co-chair.

“I began an effort to encourage the use of single-engine air tankers as an initial attack force on fire, with the goal to be on the fire in two hours, not two days,” he wrote in the press release announcing his reelection bid. “Burning up our natural resources is inherently wrong. We can and must do better.”

He’s also on the House Transportation committee; its job is not only roads and railroads but also aviation. Dent is a pilot and had an extensive career as an aerial applicator. He is chair of the Aviation Caucus, he said.

Dent said in a November meeting with the Ephrata City Council that legislative cooperation is important when it comes to getting things done.

“It’s all about relationships. Relationships you can build, not only with members of your caucus, but members of the other caucus. The credibility that you have with them is all-important,” Dent said. “I’ve got friends on the other side, and they help me a lot.”

    Tom Dent, 13th District Representative, has announced he will run for reelection this year.