Candidate filling week is coming soon and races affecting Whidbey Island are already shaping up to be intense, with the likelihood of at least a couple of races having enough challengers to go to the primary ballot.
Filing week is May 16-20. Filing fees for state and county positions are 1% of the annual salary; for upcoming races on Whidbey, the fees range from $568.81 for a state legislator seat to $1,703.22 for county prosecutor.
One Island County commissioner seat and all the other elected county positions, except superior court judges, will be on the ballot this November.
Commissioner Janet St. Clair, a Democrat, will seek reelection in District 3, which covers North Whidbey and Camano Island. She already has two Republican challengers. Former Commissioner Rick Hannold, whom she beat in the election four years ago, and Tim Hazelo announced their plans months ago.
Island County Treasurer Wanda Grone, a Republican, said she is retiring at the end of the year. Her chief deputy, Anthony Lam, filed as a treasurer candidate with the state Public Disclosure Commission, as did Richard MacQuarrie. Grone said she will support Lam even though he filed as a Democrat since the position is very technical and not very partisan.
The Public Disclosure Commission, or PDC, keeps track of donations and other political disclosure reporting data. A potential candidate has to file with the PDC within a certain period after announcing his or her intention. The state candidate filing period, in contrast, is a week-long period in which candidates officially file and pay a filing fee.
It’s unclear whether Bernie Upchurch, who was appointed auditor, or Coroner Robert Bishop plan on running this year. Bishop apparently hasn’t been to work in months, but county officials are unable to discuss the reason.
Sheriff Rick Felici, Prosecutor Greg Banks, Auditor Sheilah Crider and Clerk Debra Van Pelt have all indicated they plan to run for reelection. District Court Judge Bill Hawkins could not be reached by press time.
District 10 has long been the scene of hard-fought races with the potential of swinging the political balance in Olympia. Not surprising, state Rep. Dave Paul, D-Oak Harbor, and Rep. Greg Gilday, R-Camano, already have challengers.
Oak Harbor resident Karen Lesetmoe, a real estate agent and a Republican, filed with the PDC as a candidate against Paul. Clyde Shavers, an Oak Harbor resident, is running as a Democrat against Gilday. Shavers is a Navy veteran, an attorney and a community volunteer.
Three candidates have filed with the Federal Election Commission to run against U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen of the Second Congressional District. They are Jason Call, a progressive Democrat, and Republicans Leif Johnson and Carrie Kennedy.
Of course, every year the filing period has at least a couple of surprise candidates.
