Probst, James in tight race to replace Dunn

The 17th District contest to succeed Republican Rep. Jim Dunn is a nail-biter.

Democrat Tim Probst, 38, who heads a statewide work force training organization, drew 48.2 percent of the primary vote to 33.2 percent for Joseph James, the 27-year-old owner of a Stevenson dog boarding business. Dunn, who was eliminated in the August top two primary, drew 18.5 percent. If James is able to hold onto all the Republican votes cast, he’ll have the edge in November.

But Probst has a solid base of support. His job for the past nine years, advocating for investments in the education and training of the state’s work force to help workers compete in the global economy, gives him credibility in both education and the business world.

“Life’s about service to other people and government should be too,” he told an audience of disability advocates at a candidate forum last week.

His résumé includes a stint as a state policy analyst, legislative liaison and assistant to Illinois Gov. Jim Edgar from 1994 to 1998.

Probst lobbied legislators for the Opportunity Grants bill that allows low-income students to move to college, apprenticeships or job skills training they could not otherwise afford, as long as they train in high-demand fields like health care and biotechnology. The 12 local councils his office oversees help about 6,000 students each year enter post-secondary training.

He’s a believer in public funding of local and state elections and lobbied Olympia unsuccessfully for “clean elections” legislation.

Probst filed for the 17th District seat a year ago and raised money for several months before announcing his candidacy in February. He serves on the Greater Vancouver Chamber of Commerce’s Public Affairs Committee and has been endorsed by virtually every Democratic leader in Clark County.

“I’m a moderate,” he told The Columbian. “I hope to win over independents.”

In fundraising, Probst is nearly even with James, who has tapped a network of small-scale donors in several states.

James took the unusual step of running against Dunn, a fellow Republican, after he became convinced that Dunn wasn’t serving the constituents of the 17th District. Dunn was disciplined last year by his own party for his behavior toward a woman.

James has attracted an enthusiastic cadre of young volunteers. However, his campaign has sometimes stumbled, most notoriously by putting out two campaign fliers that exaggerated how much of the state transportation budget goes to support public transit.

James has been endorsed by the Human Life Action Committee and the Faith and Freedom Political Action Committee, religious right organizations that oppose abortion and same-sex marriage.

He opposes government intervention in health care and has promised to reduce regulations for small businesses if elected. He also supports exempting the first $50,000 of B & O taxes to give relief to local business owners.

James signed a no-new-taxes pledge and has vowed to support repeal of the state portion of property tax. “This is a quick way to provide relief to people who are struggling to stay in their homes,” he wrote Sunday on his campaign blog.

James said he believes there’s plenty of waste in state government. “We just have to find more efficiencies in the budget,” he said. “Every program needs to be audited.”