By Brett Davis | The Center Square

(The Center Square) – Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz announced Wednesday that she is a candidate for Washington state governor in the 2024 election.

“My office has been on the front lines of our changing world,” she said in a tweet announcing her candidacy that includes a video detailing her time as public lands commissioner. “I know what it means to take bold risks to make big progress because there isn’t time to wait. We’re facing many challenges, but we can tackle them, together.”

She also has a campaign website up.

Franz’s announcement follows Gov. Jay Inslee’s May 1 announcement that he would not be seeking an unprecedented fourth term as governor.

The next day, Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson announced via YouTube and a website that he had launched an exploratory bid for governor.

Franz, a former environmental law and conservation attorney, was first elected state public lands commissioner in 2016 to fill the seat of retiring commissioner Peter Goldmark. She was re-elected to the position in 2020, defeating Sue Kuehl Pederson in the general election.