Former 3rd District Rep. Jolene Unsoeld died Sunday at her home in Olympia at the age of 89, just a few days before her birthday.
A Democrat, Unsoeld represented the 3rd district in Congress from 1989 to 1995 where she furthered environmental legislation. She was the third woman to represent Washington in Congress and was one of 30 women serving in the House of Representatives at the time.
Unsoeld lost her seat to Republican Linda Smith after a tough reelection battle in 1994 but continued her public service and advocacy for environmental reform and government transparency. She also briefly taught at Harvard as a fellow of the Institute of Politics at the John F. Kennedy School of Government in 1995 before returning to Washington.
