Jan. 6—OLYMPIA — One year after rioters attacked the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., and breached the gate at the governor's mansion in Olympia, Gov. Jay Inslee wants to make spreading election misinformation a crime.
During an Associated Press legislative preview Thursday, Inslee expressed his frustration with those who "continue to sow doubt on our electoral process."
"We have to realize that this is a threat that passed Jan. 6," Inslee said.
The Jan. 6 riots in Olympia forced Inslee into a safe room in the governor's mansion as protesters breached the gates and ran to his front door. Inslee recalled Thursday he was ushered out of his living room, into a safe room and told to put on a flak jacket.
Inslee said he would support a bill that would make it a gross misdemeanor — punishable by up to a year in jail or a fine of up to $5,000 — for candidates and elected officials to knowingly lie about election results. As of Thursday, no bill had been filed and no prime sponsor chosen, but Inslee said he has thought a lot about it.
Protesters at the U.S. Capitol and the Washington State Capitol last year continued to spread the belief that President Donald Trump won the election. In Washington, many supporters of Republican gubernatorial candidate Loren Culp still believed the election was fraudulent and Culp won.
Elections officials in Washington and across the country have continued to denounce those claims.
Inslee also cited three state legislators who used taxpayer dollars...
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