Asian Journal- The Filipino-American Community Newspaper

First Filipina-American, First Asian-American, and First Woman elected to the Washington State Legislature (1992)

First Filipina elected to a state legislature in the continental United States (1992)

"For an immigrant woman to be elected to public office and to be given the opportunity to be in the mainstream has been the greatest gift that people have given to me." Velma Veloria

In 1992, Velma Rosete Veloria was elected to the Washington State Legislature from Seattle’s 11th District, making her the highest ranking elected official of Filipino ancestry in the US at the time. Her victory also gave her the distinction of being the First Filipina American, First Asian-American and First woman ever elected to the Washington State Legislature.

Born in Bani, Pangasinan in 1950, Velma immigrated with her family to San Francisco when she was 11 years old. She grew up and attended college in the Bay Area. At the San Francisco State University where she earned a degree in medical technology, Velma became active in the anti-war movement. When some of her friends who were drafted into the military died in Vietnam or came back disabled, she participated in demonstration and marches to protest the war.

In 1976, Velma took a trip back to the Philippines. But what had been intended as a pleasure trip ended up as a political awakening. Velma observed the oppression and abject poverty in her homeland under the Marcos regime. She returned to San Francisco and joined the KDP (Union of Democratic Pilipinos) a group at the forefront of the Anti-Marcos Movement. A lab technician by day, Velma became a political and labor activist at night.

She worked as an internal organizer for the Office of Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU), ILWU Local 37 (cannery workers), and in Service Employees’ International Union (SEIU) campaigns in San Francisco, New York, and Seattle to organize office workers and nurses. Following the assassination of ILWU Local 37 officers and KDP activists Gene Viernes and Silme Domingo on June 1, 1981, the KDP transferred Veloria to Seattle to keep the union reform movement in the Alaska cannery industry alive. For the next few years, Veloria organized cannery workers, participated in the Committee for Justice for Domingo and Viernes, and continued to be active against the Marcos dictatorship.

Velma became involved in the Seattle Asian community. By 1989, she had developed a reputation as a savvy organizer. She was approached by Dolores Sibonga to run Dolores’ political campaign for Mayor of Seattle. The experience was an eye opener for Velma. Although Dolores didn’t win the election, the campaign gave Velma invaluable insight into running a successful political campaign, lessons that would help her later in her own political campaigns.