Chad Magendanz

Chad Magendanz
Member of the Washington House of Representatives
from the 5th district
In office
January 14, 2013 (2013-01-14) – January 9, 2017 (2017-01-09)
Preceded byGlenn Anderson
Succeeded byPaul Graves
Personal details
BornChad Lee Magendanz
(1967-05-24) May 24, 1967
PartyRepublican
SpouseGalen Pierce Magendanz
ResidenceMirrormont, Washington
EducationCornell University (BEE)
WebsiteOfficial
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/service United States Navy
Years of service1985 – 1997
Rank Lieutenant (navy)

Chad Lee Magendanz (born May 24, 1967) is an American politician who served in the Washington House of Representatives for the 5th district as a Republican from 2013 to 2017.

Education

Magendanz enrolled in Cornell University in 1985 and graduated with a BS in electrical engineering. After graduating, Magendanz served in the United States Navy until 1997 as a nuclear submarine officer.[1] He earned his Master of Arts in teaching from Central Washington University in the spring of 2021.

Personal life

He and his wife of 35 years reside in Issaquah, Washington, and have two sons.[1]

Political career

Magendanz was appointed to the Issaquah School Board in 2008, and elected to that position in 2009. He served as the school board legislative representative from 2009 to 2010 and was elected president from 2011 to 2012.[2] He was sworn into the Washington House of Representatives in 2013, representing the 5th district, a position he held until 2017. In 2016, Magendanz ran for a seat in the Washington State Senate and lost the race to the incumbent, Mark Mullet.[3]

In 2018, he was defeated by Democrat Bill Ramos in the race for State House Position 1.[4] In 2022, Magendanz challenged incumbent Lisa Callan for House District 5-Position 2 but was again defeated.[5] In 2024, he ran for the State Senate seat in District 5 but lost to Ramos.[5]

On May 6, 2025, Magendanz entered the race against Democrat Victoria Hunt to fill the vacant seat left by Bill Ramos after Ramos's death in April.[6] Hunt was appointed to the seat on June 3, 2025. She and Magendanz ran in the November general election for the full term.[7] In November 2025, Magendanz was defeated by Hunt in the general election.[8]

Electoral history

2012 Washington House of Representatives, District 5-Position 2

General election, November 6, 2012
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Chad Magendanz 35,961 55.2
Democratic David Spring 29,156 44.8
Total votes 65,117 100.0

2014 Washington House of Representatives, District 5-Position 2

General election, November 4, 2014
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Chad Magendanz (incumbent) 26,287 59.0 3.8 (vs. 2012)
Democratic David Spring 18,259 41.0 3.8 (vs. 2012)
Total votes 44,546 100.0

2016 Washington State Senate, District 5

General election, November 8, 2016
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Mark Mullet (incumbent) 37,342 50.4
Republican Chad Magendanz 36,826 49.6
Total votes 74,168 100.0

2018 Washington House of Representatives, District 5-Position 1

General election, November 6, 2018
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Bill Ramos 38,972 51.5
Republican Chad Magendanz 36,692 48.5 10.5 (vs. 2014)
Total votes 75,664 100.0

2022 Washington House of Representatives, District 5-Position 2

General election, November 8, 2022
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Lisa Callan (incumbent) 38,030 53.8
Republican Chad Magendanz 32,528 46.1 2.4 (vs. 2018)
Write-in 73 0.1
Total votes 70,631 100.0

2024 Washington State Senate, District 5

General election, November 5, 2024
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Bill Ramos 44,393 52.0
Republican Chad Magendanz 40,966 48.0
Write-in 66 0.1
Total votes 85,425 100.0

2025 Washington State Senate, District 5 (Special Election)

Special general election, November 4, 2025
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Victoria Hunt (incumbent) 28,402 56.3
Republican Chad Magendanz 22,005 43.6 4.4 (vs. 2024)
Write-in 62 0.1
Total votes 50,469 100.0

Source: Ballotpedia[5]

Legislative career

The Washington Cybercrime Act, which Magendanz co-sponsored, updates current statues to help prosecute crimes of electronic data interference, data theft, spoofing and tampering in the first and second degree.[9] Magendanz also co-sponsored House Bill 2573, which sought to alleviate teacher shortages by helping with recruitment and retention and by removing barriers for out-of-state teachers to be certified in Washington.[10][11]

Computer science career

Magendanz worked at Microsoft as a software developer. Magendanz currently teaches computer science in the Bellevue School District at Sammamish High School.[12]

References

  1. ^ a b "Chad Magendanz". votesmart.org. Retrieved 2012-12-24.
  2. ^ "Issaquah school board president Chad Magendanz announces bid for 5th District Rep". Snoqualmie Valley Record. 2012-01-10. Retrieved 2025-08-01.
  3. ^ Deng, Grace (2024-01-29). "A Republican joins the race to be Washington's next schools chief". Washington State Standard. Retrieved 2025-08-01.
  4. ^ "Washington Election Results - Election Results 2018 - The New York Times". The New York Times. 6 November 2018. Retrieved 16 November 2018.
  5. ^ a b c "Chad Magendanz". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 2025-12-04.
  6. ^ Carter, Simone (2025-05-13). "See who entered the race to fill late state Sen. Bill Ramos' seat". The Olympian. Retrieved 2025-08-01.
  7. ^ Sowersby, Shauna (June 4, 2025). "King County Council appoints Victoria Hunt, Zach Hall to legislative roles". The Seattle Times. Retrieved June 4, 2025.
  8. ^ "WATCH: Do dashed hopes for GOP gains in WA Senate mean more taxes next session?". Black Chronicle. November 6, 2025. Retrieved November 7, 2025.
  9. ^ "Magendanz celebrates sponsored/co-sponsored bills becoming law". Washington State House Republicans. 2016-04-05. Archived from the original on 2016-08-25. Retrieved 2016-07-18.
  10. ^ "HB 2573 - 2015-16". apps.leg.wa.gov. Retrieved 2016-07-18.
  11. ^ "Computer science education bill becomes law". Washington State House Republicans. 2015-06-10. Archived from the original on 2016-08-27. Retrieved 2016-07-19.
  12. ^ Rich, Amanda (17 December 2019). "Inspiring Students Through Computer Science". Bellevue School District. Retrieved 21 May 2020.