Editing Patty Murray (section)

== Early career ==
Murray was a preschool teacher for several years, and taught a parenting class at [[Shoreline Community College]] from 1984 to 1987.<ref>{{cite web |title=MURRAY, Patty (1950) - Biography |url=http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=m001111 |access-date=August 24, 2007 |work=[[Biographical Directory of the United States Congress]]}}</ref> As a citizen-[[lobbyist]] for environmental and educational issues, Murray has said that a state representative once told her she could not make a difference because she was just a "mom in tennis shoes".<ref name="auto">{{Cite news|last=Egan|first=Timothy|author-link=Timothy Egan|date=September 17, 1992|title=Another Win By a Woman, This One 'Mom'|page=A16|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/09/17/us/another-win-by-a-woman-this-one-mom.html|access-date=February 12, 2021|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The phrase stuck, and she later used it in her successful campaigns for the [[Shoreline School District]] board of directors (1985–89), [[Washington State Senate]] (1989–93), and United States Senate (1993–present).<ref name="auto"/> Murray was successful in gathering grassroots support to strike down proposed preschool program budget cuts.<ref name=senate-bio>{{cite web|title=About Patty|publisher=Office of Senator Patty Murray|website=murray.senate.gov|url=https://murray.senate.gov/about/|access-date=October 16, 2020|archive-date=January 7, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170107010900/http://www.murray.senate.gov/about/|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.freedomsphoenix.com/Opinion/094580-2011-08-11-senator-patty-murray-co-chairs-the-deficit-commission-but-cant.htm?From=News |title=Senator Patty Murray co-chairs the deficit commission but can't connect dots |website=freedomsphoenix.com |date=August 11, 2011 |access-date=February 11, 2013}}</ref>

In 1988, Murray unseated two-term incumbent [[U.S. Republican Party|Republican]] [[Washington State Senate|state Senator]] [[Bill Kiskaddon]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.heraldnet.com/news/legislator-bill-kiskaddon-was-one-of-last-to-benefit-from-partisan-redistricting/ |title=Legislator Bill Kiskaddon was one of last to benefit from partisan redistricting |author=Smith, Evan |date=December 11, 2015 |newspaper=[[The Everett Herald]] |access-date=April 22, 2020}}</ref>