Bellevue attorney Randy Gordon has been selected to replace 41st District State Sen. Fred Jarrett, who stepped down in December. The Metropolitan King County Council Precinct officials made their decision on Monday. Gordon was sworn in on the same day.

The Bellevue attorney had been ranked first, after earning the support of most of the 41st District Democratic precinct committee last week. He was followed by Democratic party activist and Renton resident Aaron Belenky, and Greater Seattle Business Association vice president George Pieper of Bellevue ranked third.

Asked about Gordon’s nomination, Jarrett said he supports the choice.

“Randy has been a supporter of mine, and I look forward to supporting him. Randy will serve admirably as our next state senator at a time when we need great leadership. I look forward to the County Council appointing him as soon as possible so he can get to work in Olympia,” he said.

Recognizing the 41st District’s competitive political landscape, Gordon called upon party members to begin fundraising and campaigning for holding the seat in this year’s upcoming election.

“We’re going to get in great shape, doorbell and get to know all of our constituents,” he said.

The 41st District includes south and central Bellevue, Mercer Island, Newcastle and parts of Renton and west Issaquah.

Two other contestants for the seat included Mercer Island resident Michael Rosen and three-time congressional candidate Heidi Behrens-Benedict.

The process to replace Jarrett began in November when the Democrat announced he was leaving Olympia early for the position of King County Deputy County Executive.

The Senate seat will ultimately be up for re-election for the remainder of the four-year term this November.

Living in Bellevue for nearly 30 years, Gordon is a principal attorney at the Gordon Edmunds Elder law firm and has served as an adjunct law professor at Seattle University since 1999.

He has also been active in community organizations, including a program leadership role with the YMCA and as an advisor to a local Boy Scouts post.

Gordon is not new to politics and most recently ran for the 8th U.S. District in the 2006 election before bowing out of a democratic primary race with Darcy Burner.

Jarrett served four terms in the state House of Representatives as a Republican representing the Eastside’s 41st Legislative District, but switched to the Democratic party before he was elected to the Senate seat in 2008.