 Dembowski was elected to the Indiana Senate in December 2002 by the Democratic precinct committee people to fill the unexpired term of state senator William E. Alexa, who resigned from the senate to fill a seat on the Porter County Superior Court.Dembowski ran unchallenged in the 2004 democratic primary, facing Republican Victor R. Heinold in the general election and losing by less than 500 votes.She defeated two-term Republican incumbent Steve Heim in 2006.