WALLA WALLA – State Senator Mike Hewitt announced this week that he will not seek re-election this year. The Walla Walla Republican, representing the 16th legislative district, is finishing his fourth four-year term.

"I've had 15 good years protecting the interests of my neighbors," Hewitt said in a press release. "It's time to step aside and give someone else a chance to do the same."

Hewitt, who has lived his entire life in the Walla Walla Valley was first elected to the state Senate in 2000 and was elected as Senate Republican leader in 2005, a position he held until 2012.

Hewitt will turn...