User:Enos733/Denis Law (politician)

Denis Law was the mayor of Renton, Washington from 2008-2019.

Early Life and Career
Law started his career as a photographer for the South District Journal, which covered the Rainier Beach and Beacon Hill neighborhoods in Seattle. He often shot photos of crime scene and fires.

Law's first venture into publishing began with his ownership of the weekly The Capitol Hill Times, University Herald, North Central Outlook, Beacon Hill News and South District Journal, and the monthly Madison Park Times. He sold those papers to Pacific Publishing Company in 1990.

In 1995, Law founded Puget Sound Publishing Co., creating the Renton Kent and Auburn Reporters. He sold the company to Horvitz Newspapers in 2008. After the sale, Law became vice-president of the newspaper division of Horvitz Newspapers and remained publisher of the Renton, Kent and Auburn Reporters and became the publisher of the Northshore Citizen and Snoqualmie Valley Record until 2003 when he resigned to run for the Renton City Council.

Law has earned over 250 national and state journalism awards for his photography and publications. He donated his collection of photographs to the Rainier Valley Historical Society

Political career
Law was first elected to the Renton City Council in 2005. .

In 2007, Law ran for mayor against the incumbent mayor, Kathy Keolker, and defeated her by seven percentage points. Law ran as a "law-and-order" candidate, in a race was marked by controversy about potential open public meeting act violations and a note left on the Keolker's mirror at city hall.

Law ran for reelection unopposed in 2011 and 2015. His reelection in 2015 made him the first mayor of Renton to serve three terms.

One of the first issues to come up during Law's tenure as mayor was annexation of the Renton Library system into the King County Library System. Law was supportive of the annexation into KCLS and the replacement of the Renton Library, a building straddling the Cedar River in downtown Renton.

Law was active in supporting Boeing's presence in Renton. In 2010, he signed a 40-year lease agreement with Boeing at the Renton Municipal Airport. Along with other regional leaders, he encouraged Boeing Machinists to approve a contract offer from the company in 2013 after the Machinists rejected an earlier contract.

Law was critical about the projects included in the Sound Transit 3 ballot measure for Renton in 2016. Law urged the Sound Transit Board to add BRT service along I-405 and build a 2,000 stall parking garage in Renton.

Law was supportive of ending source of income discrimination in Renton. The law prohibits landlords from discriminating against tenants based on participation in Section 8 housing programs and the Council passed the ordinance in November 2016.

As mayor, Law accepted an award on behalf of the city from the National League of Cities for its programs to embrace and celebrate diversity in the city. He also stated that Renton employees will continue to not check immigration status among residents a few months after President Trump was elected president.

Law was selected by the members of the Sound Cities Association to serve as president from 2012-2013. He also serves on the executive board of the Puget Sound Regional Council.

Personal Life
Law lives in Renton with his wife, Patty.