Governor’s Wife Gives Birth To Daughter

A beaming Gov. Gary Locke on Monday described the birth of his first child as “better than any political campaign,” and proclaimed his new daughter beautiful.

“It was great,” Locke told a news conference at Swedish Medical Center. “She’s so cute. Really pink. Her eyes are open and she doesn’t really cry very much - and she’s just so tiny.”

Washington’s first lady, Mona Lee Locke, gave birth to 5-pound, 9-ounce Emily Nicole at the hospital at 9:47 p.m. Sunday - 2-1/2 weeks before the due date.

Mother and daughter were doing fine Monday after what the attending physician, Nancy O’Neil, called a completely normal birth. A decision on how long they would remain hospitalized would be made after their conditions were assessed later in the day, she said.

Locke passed out pink “It’s a Girl” buttons before sitting down to describe the birth - the first to a sitting Washington governor since Nancy Evans had two sons while her husband, Dan, was serving in the 1960s and 1970s.

Locke said the experience began about 4:30 a.m. Sunday at the Governor’s Mansion in Olympia, when his wife’s water broke. They called for advice, and were told to make their way “leisurely” to the hospital, he said.

Locke said he helped coach his wife during labor, and “kind of helped catch” the baby when it emerged, and cut the umbilical cord.

Then, he said, he grabbed a camera and began snapping away, using up two 36-shot rolls of film in short order.