Local News

The Seattle Times political team explores national, state and local politics.

State Sen. Ed Murray, who led the referendum campaign to legalize gay marriage, is getting married Aug. 10 to his longtime partner, Michael Shiosaki. The two planned the wedding for the 22-year anniversary of the day they met, on a hiking trip at Mt. Rainier.

It also happens to be four days after the Aug. 6 primary election, where Murray is vying for Mayor Mike McGinn’s job at City Hall. His success will hinge on the crowded and competitive primary, where several big-name, experienced politicians are fighting to advance to the November election.

Murray said he thought it might be “a little weird” to get married so close to the election, but Shiosaki really wanted to do it then. Over the years, Murray said, Shiosaki has had to give up a lot for Murray’s political schedule. Murray gave in.

Murray unwittingly announced the couple’s engagement on Facebook Tuesday afternoon. Sitting at his desk in Olympia, he said he noticed he could change his Facebook profile from domestic partners to “engaged.” He did, and the comments started flying. More than 100 people had “liked” his status within 45 minutes. Shiosaki called him directly, he said, to ask about the unplanned announcement. The two have said publicly in the past that they planned to marry sometime in 2013, but they hadn’t gotten specific.

As native Washingtonians, Murray said, he and Shiosaki have waited a long time to get married in their own state. They plan to exchange vows at St. Mark’s Cathedral.