{{Short description|American lawyer (born 1958 or 1959)}} {{Infobox judge |name = Sal Mungia |office = Associate Justice of the Washington Supreme Court |term_start = January 15, 2025 |term_end = |predecessor = Susan Owens |successor = |birth_name = Salvador Alejo Mungia II |birth_date = {{birth date and age|1959|2|19}} |birth_place = Lakewood, Washington, U.S. |death_date = |death_place = |education = Pacific Lutheran University (BA)<br>Georgetown University (JD) }} '''Salvador Alejo Mungia II''' (born February 19, 1959)<ref>{{cite web |title=Salvador Alejo Mungia II |url=https://archive.today/20251006031407/https://www.lawyers.com/tacoma/washington/salvador-alejo-mungia-ii-1778485-a/ |website=Lawyers.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Geballe |first=Bob |title=The Atlas of Legal Aid - If Salvador Mungia had his way, 'justice for all' would be a given |url=https://www.superlawyers.com/articles/washington/the-atlas-of-legal-aid/ |website=Super Lawyers |date=July 15, 2021}}</ref> is an American lawyer who has served as a justice of the Washington Supreme Court since 2025.
== Early life and education ==
Mungia was born in Lakewood, Washington.<ref name="KXLY">{{cite news |last1=Park |first1=Julia |title=Four candidates are vying to fill the open WA Supreme Court seat |url=https://www.kxly.com/news/top-stories/four-candidates-are-vying-to-fill-the-open-wa-supreme-court-seat/article_aabb5efa-3ede-11ef-90f9-e34b810a0901.html |access-date=27 November 2024 |work=KXLY |date=July 10, 2024}}</ref> He graduated from Clover Park High School in 1977 he attended Pacific Lutheran University, graduating in 1981.<ref name="courts.wa.gov">{{Cite web |date=July 18, 2024 |title=Seattle attorney Sal Mungia leads fundraising, endorsement race for open Washington Supreme Court seat, but opponents say he was picked by elites |url=https://www.courts.wa.gov/content/publicupload/eclips/2024%2007%2018%20%20Seattle%20attorney%20Sal%20Mungia%20leads%20fundraising,%20endorsement%20race%20for%20open%20Washington%20Supreme%20Court%20seat,%20but%20opponents%20say%20he%20was%20picked%20by%20elites.pdf |access-date=November 26, 2024 |website=www.courts.wa.gov}}</ref> He graduated from Georgetown University Law Center in 1984.<ref name="courts.wa.gov"/><ref name="KXLY"/>
== Career ==
After graduating law school, Mungia clerked for Washington Supreme Court Justice Fred H. Dore and then U.S. District Court Judge Carolyn Dimmick.<ref name="KXLY"/> In 1986, he joined Gordon Thomas Honeywell in Tacoma where he specialized in civil trial and appellate law, including medical malpractice, injury, and business law.<ref name="NWP">{{cite news |last1=Duyvestein |first1=Annika |title=Meet the 2024 candidates for Washington State Supreme Court Position #2: Sal Mungia |url=https://www.nwprogressive.org/weblog/2024/06/meet-the-2024-candidates-for-washington-state-supreme-court-position-2-sal-mungia.html |access-date=27 November 2024 |work=The Cascadia Advocate |date=June 21, 2024}}</ref><ref name="dailyuw">{{Cite web |last=Bortnick |first=Morgan |date=November 2, 2024 |title=Washington state Supreme Court candidate profile: Sal Mungia |url=https://www.dailyuw.com/news/washington-state-supreme-court-candidate-profile-sal-mungia/article_6495c88a-994b-11ef-9ecb-179ba7a99525.html |access-date=November 26, 2024 |website=The Daily of the University of Washington |language=en}}</ref> He has argued appeals to the U.S. Supreme Court.<ref name="KUOW">{{cite news |last1=Greenstone |first1=Scott |title=Washington's Supreme Court will have its first truly open election in 12 years |url=https://www.kuow.org/stories/washington-s-supreme-court-has-first-truly-open-election-in-12-years |access-date=27 November 2024 |work=KUOW |date=October 14, 2024}}</ref>
Mungia worked with a group of lawyers who proposed a judicial rule to help stop racial discrimination in jury selection, which the Washington Supreme Court adopted in 2018.<ref name="KXLY"/> He has worked with the American Civil Liberties Union, providing pro bono work to incarcerated individuals and tenants in disputes with their landlords.<ref name="KXLY"/>
=== Washington Supreme Court ===
In 2024, Justice Susan Owens retired from the Supreme Court due to the state constitution that requires justices to retire at the end of the year they turn 75.<ref name="KXLY"/> It was the first State Supreme court election in 12 years without an incumbent running for reelection.<ref name="KUOW"/> In the primary election, Mungia came in first among four candidates, with 43.43%, and Federal Way Municipal Court judge Dave Larson came in second, with 36.45%.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.sos.wa.gov/sites/default/files/2024-08/Certification%20of%20Results%20-%202024%20Primary.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250706000936/https://www.sos.wa.gov/sites/default/files/2024-08/Certification%20of%20Results%20-%202024%20Primary.pdf |archive-date=July 6, 2025 |url-status=live|title=Canvass of the Returns of the Primary Held on August 6, 2024|last=Hobbs|first=Steve|author-link=Steve Hobbs (Washington politician)|date=August 22, 2024|work=Secretary of State of Washington|access-date=July 15, 2025}}</ref>
Although a nonpartisan election, Mungia was endorsed by Democrats, while Larson was endorsed by the State Republican party.<ref name="KUOW"/> He outraised Larson, $525,000 to $175,000, with most of Mungia's donations coming from democratic or progressive sources.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Davis |first1=Brett |title=Mungia, Larson remain in a tight battle for Position 2 seat on WA Supreme Court |url=https://www.thecentersquare.com/washington/article_3f38ef6c-9bc2-11ef-8b3c-cf9e31aa17b0.html |access-date=28 November 2024 |work=The Center Square |date=November 6, 2024}}</ref> Mungia won the general election, winning by a close margin, 50.05% to 49.44%.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Demkovich |first=Laurel |date=November 15, 2024 |title=Race for WA Supreme Court seat still close as final votes are tallied • Washington State Standard |url=https://washingtonstatestandard.com/briefs/race-for-wa-supreme-court-seat-still-close-as-final-votes-are-tallied/ |access-date=November 26, 2024 |website=Washington State Standard |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="2024Results"/>
== Personal life ==
Mungia is a child of immigrant parents; his father is from Mexico, and his mother is from Japan.<ref name="dailyuw"/> He is single and has three adult children, one child in school and one grandchild.<ref name="courts.wa.gov"/>
== Electoral history ==
{{Election box begin no change | title=SUPREME COURT - Justice Position #02<ref name=2024Results>{{Cite news|url=https://www.sos.wa.gov/sites/default/files/2024-12/Official%20Canvass%20of%20the%20Returns%20G2024_%20Certification%2012%2004%202024.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250704104515/https://www.sos.wa.gov/sites/default/files/2024-12/Official%20Canvass%20of%20the%20Returns%20G2024_%20Certification%2012%2004%202024.pdf |archive-date=2025-07-04 |url-status=live|title=Canvass of the Returns of the General Election Held on November 5, 2024|last=Hobbs|first=Steve|author-link=Steve Hobbs (Washington politician)|date=December 4, 2024|work=Secretary of State of Washington|access-date=July 14, 2025}}</ref>}} {{Election box winning candidate with party link no change | party=Non partisan | candidate=Sal Mungia | votes=1,644,253 | percentage=50.05}} {{Election box candidate with party link no change | party=Non partisan | candidate=Dave Larson | votes=1,624,309 | percentage=49.44}} {{Election box write-in with party link no change | votes=16,654 | percentage=0.51}} {{Election box total no change | votes=3,285,216 | percentage=100.00}} {{Election box end}}
== References == {{Reflist}}
== External links == *{{Ballotpedia|Sal_Mungia}} *[https://www.oyez.org/advocates/salvador_a_mungia|Sal Mungia] at Oyez
{{s-start}} {{s-legal}} {{s-bef|before=Susan Owens}} {{s-ttl|title={{nowrap|Associate Justice of the Washington Supreme Court}}|years=2025–present}} {{s-inc}} {{s-end}}
{{Statewide political officials of Washington}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mungia, Sal}} Category:1950s births Category:Living people Category:20th-century American lawyers Category:21st-century American judges Category:21st-century American lawyers Category:American jurists of Japanese descent Category:American judges of Mexican descent Category:Georgetown University Law Center alumni Category:Justices of the Washington Supreme Court Category:Pacific Lutheran University alumni Category:People from Lakewood, Washington
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