John E. Braun

John Eric Braun (born January 16, 1967) is an American politician and former Navy captain from Washington. A Republican, Braun is in the Washington State Senate, representing the 20th legislative district. He serves as the Minority Leader of the Washington State Senate.

Early life, education, and military service John Braun was born on January 16, 1967, in Columbus, Ohio. He grew up in Ohio and attended the University of Washington on a U.S. Naval ROTC scholarship. He graduated in 1989 with a Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering. He then served seven years on active duty with the United States Navy.

Following active service with the Navy, Braun earned his Master of Business Administration degree and Master of Science in engineering management from the University of Michigan in 1999.

Business career Braun serves as president of Braun Northwest, a family-owned emergency vehicle manufacturer founded in 1986, which serves emergency response agencies across the western United States.

Political In 2012, Braun ran in a three-way all-Republican primary versus the incumbent state senator Dan Swecker and employment specialist and former substitute teacher Rae Lowery. Braun had a strong showing in the primary with 40.33 percent of the vote compared to Swecker's 46.97 percent. In the general election, Braun greatly improved on his primary showing; defeating Swecker with 55.43 percent of the vote.

Braun is considered a moderate Republican, being closely tied to the centrist Mainstream Republicans of Washington organization founded by Rockefeller Republican and former Washington Secretary of State Sam Reed. He has frequently crossed party lines in the Washington State legislature. Braun is credited with having created a friendly "culture of collaboration" between Democrats and Republicans, with party line votes being "the exception, not the rule" as described by Senate Majority Leader Andy Billig. He maintains a close friendship with both Billig and Lieutenant Governor and President of the Senate Denny Heck

Under Braun's leadership as Senate Minority Leader, the State Senate has shown a trend of increasing bipartisan support for bills in recent years. In 2023, 95.9% of bills received bipartisan backing, compared to 94.5% in 2022 and 92.8% in 2021.

Legislative leadership and committees Braun was a member of the Senate Ways and Means Committee.

In November 2020, Braun was elected Washington Senate Minority Leader by members of the Republican caucus. Braun has served as the minority leader since the start of the 2021–2022 legislative session.

Braun's key legislative accomplishments include Senate Bill 6163, which funded services to support individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, later passing with bipartisan support in the state legislature.

2026 U.S. House campaign In August 2025, Braun announced that he would be running for U.S. House in Washington's 3rd congressional district in 2026.

Personal life Braun lives on a small farm in rural Centralia with his wife and four children, while managing the family business.

Awards 2014 Guardians of Small Business award. Presented by NFIB.