With today being the last day to vote before we count ’em up, some observations:
Clark County Chair
During the last election, Clark County voters sent a clear message. Republican County Councilors David Madore and Tom Mielke were behaving so badly, residents voted to change our form of government to lessen their power.
In this election, we have an opportunity to continue sending that message. That’s because the M&M boys are both running to become the county council chair. If they lose the chair race, they will retain their county council seats, but they’ll get a message loud and clear: Clean up your act. If they win, voters will be saying they like the performance they’re getting.
Madore is spending huge amounts of money to try to win the chair position. Mielke is relying on his north county base to put him on top.
Republican County Councilor Jeanne Stewart is also running for the chair. She is thoughtful and deliberate. I don’t agree with all of her positions but, remember, this chair position is less about positions and more about leadership. She has shown an ability to not get run over by the M&M boys, and that’s a good thing.
Battle Ground City Councilor Mike Dalesandro is the lone Democrat in the race. He’s a young, bright guy who impressed me more than I expected. He’s got a good grasp on the issues and is articulate. Could he handle the M&M boys? Not everyone is certain.
Former County Commissioner Marc Boldt is a good guy with good thoughts. He’s a Republican but is running as an independent. I like him personally. His biggest drawback — like many of us — is, he’s not a great communicator. So the question is, do we want someone who isn’t a great communicator as, essentially, the face of the county council?
County Council District 2
When the new form of county government passed, part of the deal was to carve the county up into four council districts, rather than three commissioner districts. The fifth position is the at-large county chair.
The old form of county government allowed the three commissioners to be voted on by all county residents. Now only the county chair position is voted on by the entire county.
The new district is District 2. It happens to be my district, which includes Salmon Creek.
Republican Julie Olson is a tireless worker. She’s focused, determined and likely to end up near the top of the leader board.
Democrat Chuck Green has the brains. He comes off as a bit of an eccentric, which is not necessarily a bad thing.
Democrat Mike Pond is young and energetic. He probably exceeded my expectations more than anyone I interviewed during this election. He’s clearly done his homework.
Tanner Martin is very raw but dedicated to figuring out this running-for-office thing. He’s one of the few candidates who — after visiting with our editorial board — called me and asked for constructive criticism on how he did. We had a good conversation.
Republican Mary Benton is basically running a stealth campaign. You’ll see this on occasion in elections. She is hoping to get votes based on name recognition. Her husband — Don Benton — is both a state senator and the county’s environmental services director.
I detailed Mary Benton’s approach to her election strategy in my last column.
This is another opportunity for voters to send a message. Mary Benton is hoping her last name will resonate with voters. Most agree her last name will resonate with voters.
How exactly it resonates will be the question.
Port Commissioner
I’m not crazy about the proposed oil terminal, so my vote will go to either Eric LaBrant or Nick Ande.
