| Brian Dansel | |
| State Senate: | Washington |
| District: | 7th |
| Term Start: | December 6, 2013 |
| Term End: | January 24, 2017 |
| Predecessor: | John Smith |
| Successor: | Shelly Short |
| Birth Name: | Brian Ross Dansel |
| Birth Date: | 2 April 1983 |
| Birth Place: | Republic, Washington, U.S. |
| Party: | Republican |
| Education: | Walla Walla Community College (AA) |
Brian Ross Dansel (born April 2, 1983)[1] is an American politician, political advisor, and current member of the Ferry County Board of Commissioners. Before that he was a Special Assistant to the United States Secretary of Agriculture in the Trump Administration. He was previously a Republican member of the Washington State Senate from the 7th Legislative District.[2] Dansel won the seat in the 2013 election, in which he defeated appointed senator John Smith, and was sworn in on December 6, 2013.[3]
In a letter to the Washington State Office of Governor dated January 24, 2017, Dansel resigned as senator for the seventh district and vacated his seat after accepting a position with the Trump Administration as a Special Assistant to the Secretary of Agriculture.[4] In early November, he returned to Washington state to be the director of the state's USDA Farm Service Agency.[5]
In 2023, he became a Ferry County Commissioner.[6]
Dansel represented Douglas, Ferry, Okanogan, Pend Oreille, and Stevens Counties, along with portions of Grant and Spokane Counties.[7] An earlier redistricting proposal from 2021 would have divided Okanogan County between the 7th and 13th districts.[8]
In 2013, Dansel ran against incumbent Republican senator John Smith. On November 5, 2013, Dansel defeated Smith with 54% of the vote.[9]
During his campaign for state senate, Dansel received the endorsement of the Washington Education Association and a $500 contribution from the Spokane Committee on Political Education, a political action committee under the AFL-CIO.[10] [11] Smith claimed that Dansel was a "tool of unions" throughout the campaign. Dansel responded by asserting that "he'll listen to anyone, whether they agree with him or not."[12]
On February 10, 2024, Dansel announced that he would be a candidate for the United States House of Representatives to succeed Cathy McMorris Rodgers, who is not seeking reelection.[13] On April 19th, his campaign was endorsed by the Washington State Republican Party during the State convention.[14]
On August 6, 2024, Dansel lost the primary, placing in a distant fifth.[15] He promptly refused to concede, announced his retirement from politics, deleted his Twitter account,[16] and changed his profile picture on Facebook to text that stated "Taking a long break!!"[17]