Suzan DelBene, who recently lost her bid to unseat Republican U.S. Rep Dave Reichert in Washington state's 8th Congressional District, will be the new head of the state Department of Revenue.

Gov. Chris Gregorie announced the appointment on Tuesday, saying there's nothing political about the move.

"What I saw is a person who has impeccable judgment, good values, good business sense and will bring all that at a time we desperately need to help business be successful and pull out of this recession," Gregoire said.

DelBene will replace Cindi Holmstrom who is leaving for a job with Pierce Consulting Group, an economic consulting and government affairs business based in Olympia.

When asked if she planned to run for office again, DelBene said, "Right now I'm focused on doing this. I wasn't expecting to be doing this three months ago. I really want to make a difference here."

DelBene will be paid $147,000 a year. She has an extensive background in business, including working as a vice president for Microsoft and helping launch drugstore.com. She has an MBA from the University of Washington.