OLYMPIA — Republican candidates running for state Senate this year say they have a plan to push back on progressive policies coming out of Olympia: forming a bipartisan coalition of moderates that could work together to block certain legislation and tax increases.

The possibility of a new moderate coalition comes with a few key swing Senate seats in play in the November election and as lawmakers prepare for a 2026 legislative session that will likely focus, again, on tax reforms and affordability. A united block of moderates, especially in the more narrowly divided Senate, could reshape how those debates unfold and complicate the Democratic majority’s ability to push its agenda through.

According to the Republican candidates, there is already an appetite in the statehouse from some Republicans and Democrats.

Rep. Michelle Caldier, R-Gig Harbor, is a candidate for a Senate seat in the 26th District — the most expensive state race this year. On the campaign trail, Caldier has told supporters she has commitments from Democrats who were “sick and tired” of their party and would join a coalition if she's elected.

“I think the best thing that we can do for our state is to make sure that we have independent thinking people and legislators who put people before themselves,” Caldier said in an interview with The Seattle Times.

She said such a coalition — made up of Democrats unwilling to remain in “lockstep” with their party, and Republicans — could influence policy by blocking legislation or reshaping bills before they pass. She has specifically pointed to Rep. Amy Walen, D-Kirkland, and Republican Chad Magendanz, who are both running for Senate seats, as those interested in working together, but Caldier declined to name lawmakers currently in the Senate.

Caldier, a six-term state representative who has emphasized fiscal restraint and government accountability during her House tenure, has consistently opposed Democratic-led tax increases and is a vocal advocate for parental rights in public education.

Walen, who is seeking the state Senate seat in the 48th District, said she remains committed to caucusing with Democrats, but acknowledged there is “interest in moderates working together to solve the things that we agree on.”

“I'm hopeful that I can build a coalition of Democrats to work together to moderate some of the very strong progressive pressure that's happening in the Senate Democratic Caucus,” Walen said. “And if Republicans want to join us along the way, then I would be interested in that too.”

Asked what policies a coalition might oppose, Walen cited proposed tax increases and said K-12 education could be a bipartisan priority.

Walen has been a House representative since 2019. She voted against the rent increase cap this year and says she intends to focus on restructuring Washington’s regressive tax code if she's elected to the Senate.

The idea of a coalition of lawmakers banding together to push against the majority in Olympia is not new.

In 2010, centrist Democrats in the Senate formed the “Roadkill Caucus,” named so because they felt run over by lawmakers on both the right and the left. In her book “Getting Elected is the Easy Part,” former longtime Sen. Karen Keiser described the group as the “most disruptive” caucus she ever dealt with. She said the coalition made it “difficult to make real progress” and contributed to Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown’s abrupt resignation in 2012.

Keiser told The Times that when Democrats held only a slim majority, it didn’t take many defections to block bills — and that the Roadkill members knew how to wield their leverage. She recalled when one coalition member, who also served as the vice chair of the Senate budget committee at the time, voted against the budget on the debate floor, throwing the process into chaos.

“Any one or two of them could raise an objection and cause us to have to work a little harder to get to yes, and that happened quite often on bills,” Keiser said.

Brown did not respond to a request for comment.

The group later rebranded as the Reasonable and Pragmatic Democrats, according to former state Sen. Mark Mullet, an Issaquah Democrat now running for Issaquah mayor. Mullet, who served in the Senate from 2012 to 2024, said the group met weekly over dinner to coordinate positions — and to push back on proposals they felt were out of touch with most voters. He said the caucus wasn’t as “relevant” between 2013 and 2017, when Democrats were in the minority in the Senate.

The coalition successfully blocked legislation such as unemployment benefits for striking workers and rent control proposals — both of which passed during the most recent session.

Mullet said the purpose wasn’t necessarily just to block legislation, but to fix it so it had “broader support across the political spectrum.”

“I think a lot of times the Seattle delegation ideas were just a little bit out of touch with the average voter in the state of Washington,” he said. “We were trying to recenter the Democratic Party towards issues that resonated broader across the majority of the residents.”

Mullet said the coalition also helped shape low-carbon fuel standards and adjustments in the Climate Commitment Act and played a role in advancing the 2022 transportation package.

Magendanz, a former state representative now running for Senate in the 5th District, was a part of the Roadkill Caucus during his time in the House from 2013 to 2017. In a recent KUOW interview, he said the state needs to focus on getting to a “healthy middle” again in Olympia.

In an interview with The Times, Magendanz said one of his first priorities, if elected to the Senate, is to work with Caldier, Walen and others to create a coalition of moderates.

“We're very much in tune on that effort to rebuild the middle,” Magendanz said.

Magendanz, who has diverged from his Republican colleagues on issues like same-sex marriage, abortion and cannabis legalization, said he's proud of his voting record.

I think that focus on the policy, rather than the party, allows me to represent my district more faithfully, he said. Like Caldier, he declined to name current lawmakers who might join the effort.

Similar coalitions have emerged before. Two Senate Democrats joined with Republicans to form the Majority Coalition Caucus, which controlled the Senate and influenced several legislative sessions from late 2012 through 2017.

Still, building a new coalition today may be more difficult. In the earlier days of the Roadkill Caucus, Democrats had a smaller majority in the statehouse, making it easy for just three or four members to block votes. Now that they holder larger majorities, Republicans would need to win key races and recruit a broader swath of Democrats.

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