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× From incarceration to the Washington Legislature, Rep. Tarra Simmons hits her stride in first term in Olympia By Maya Leshikar, The Seattle Times Published: April 25, 2021, 8:30am Share: Washington state Rep. Tarra Simmons, a Bremerton Democrat, backs a bill that would allow formerly incarcerated people to work in health care and in-home care jobs. Simmons stands near the King County Courthouse in downtown Seattle on June 1, 2018. (Mike Seigel/The Seattle Times/TNS) The 2021 legislative session has been memorable for Tarra Simmons. When Simmons won a seat in the Washington House back in November, she was at home with her family, socially distanced due to COVID-19 — an odd, “anticlimactic” way to learn she had been elected, becoming what’s believed to be the first formerly incarcerated person to win a state election in Washington.