In the Camas City Council Position 2, Ward 2 race, incumbent Steve Hogan is being challenged by former Camas city employee Ken Kakuk.
Hogan, 61, has served on the council for the past eight years. He has a long history of volunteering for a number of roles within the community, including the Camas Educational Foundation, Downtown Camas Association, Camas-Washougal Rotary Club, Camas-Washougal Economic Development Association board of directors and Journey Community Church, to name a few.
In addition to his many community volunteer roles, Hogan has a long resume in the business world, running companies in the steel, wood, and more recently recycled paper products industries. He provides to the council a business background few, if any, can match.
His impressive community and business resume aside, Hogan has a conservative reputation when it comes to budgets and raising taxes that fits the city of Camas well.
He’s not afraid to challenge any suggested rate or tax increase, or a budget that could be tightened further. That’s a valuable perspective to have on any local government board.
Kakuk’s political experience amounts to a race for Camas mayor against incumbent Scott Higgins in 2011 — a race that he lost. Kakuk, 53, is a former Camas city employee who two years ago after he was fired from the city, said he had “an inkling to get into politics.”
Unfortunately Kakuk, instead of trying to be an asset to the city and work with others, has focused his efforts the last two years since his mayoral defeat, on undermining and criticizing city hall without offering any positive ideas of his own. His obvious vendetta against Camas can hardly install confidence in voters to trust him as someone that would work with others and stay focused on city business at hand.
This race is an easy call. Steve Hogan has been a quality councilman and still has much to offer the city of Camas. He deserves re-election by a wide margin.
