FERNDALE, Wash. — 42nd Legislative District State Senator Doug Ericksen died yesterday, December 17th, according to a press release from the Senate Republican Caucus. He was 52.
It was reported that Ericksen had been diagnosed with COVID-19 while in El Salvador last month and soon after transported to Florida for medical care.
Ericksen was born and raised in Whatcom County and had been serving in elected positions in Olympia since 1998. He served 6 terms in the House, and then was elected to the Senate in 2010 where he represented Whatcom County’s 42nd District.
At the time of his passing, Senator Ericksen was ranking minority member on the Senate Energy, Environment and Technology Committee. He also served on the Higher Education and Workforce Development Committee.
Ericksen received a bachelor’s degree from Cornell University and a master’s from Western Washington University. He and his wife Tasha, a high-school teacher in Bellingham, have been raising their 2 daughters in Ferndale. The family asked, “Please keep our family in your prayers and thank you for continuing to respect our privacy in this extremely difficult time.”