The office was established with the implementation of the Home Rule Charter for King County on November 5, 1968.

The county executive is elected every four years and the office is nonpartisan.

The current executive is Dow Constantine, elected to replace Ron Sims since he resigned to become Deputy Secretary of Housing and Urban Development in the Obama administration on May 8, 2009.

Elections for the County Executive have historically taken place in odd-numbered years.

In November of 2024, Constantine announced that he would not seek re-election in 2025, and King County Councilmember Claudia Balducci of Bellevue launched a campaign.