Following Senate Majority Leader
Dan Feltes' retirement to run for
governor, Democrats including Whitley and former congressman
Paul Hodes sought the Democratic nomination for his seat. In the September 8th primary, Whitley won the nomination. She went on to win the general election. While in the Senate, Whitley co-sponsored legislation to ban
no-knock warrants, limit the usage of
school resource officers, and increase the state
minimum wage. She supports reproductive freedom, the expansion of
Medicaid, clean energy policies, and state education funding reform. For the 2020–2022 term, Whitley was assigned to the Administrative Rules committee, the Health and Human Services committee, and the Judiciary committee. ==Electoral history==