PORT TOWNSEND — Candidates will file this week to run in the Nov. 8 general election, which includes presidential, congressional and statewide races, as well as four Jefferson County positions.
Candidates can file in person from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Jefferson County Auditor’s Office, 1820 Jefferson St., Port Townsend. This year, voters will elect county commissioners in Districts 1 and 2, a Superior Court judge and a public utility district commissioner.
Candidates also will file for two state House of Representatives and one Senate seat to run in District 24, which includes Clallam and Jefferson counties and part of Grays Harbor County.
Also on the ballot is the 6th Congressional District seat held by Rep. Derek Kilmer, D-Gig Harbor, whose district includes the North Olympic Peninsula.
The seat held by U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Seattle, will be up as well as nine statewide executive offices and three Supreme Court seats.
Statewide offices on the ballot will be governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, treasurer, auditor, attorney general, commissioner of public lands, superintendent of public instruction and insurance commissioner.
Candidate filing starts Monday and runs through Friday.
The top two vote-getters in the Aug. 2 primary will advance to the Nov. 8 general election regardless of party affiliation.
County commissioner
In District 1, three candidates have announced their intentions to file to succeed Phil Johnson, who declined to run for a fourth term. Kate Dean, 41, manager of the North Olympic Peninsula Resource Conservation & Development Council, announced in March that she intends to be “a new voice to step up and represent working families in Jefferson County.”
Cynthia Koan, 53, currently the chair of the Jefferson County Planning Commission, said in April she would focus her campaign on the comprehensive plan process and how the county’s human and monetary resources might be in the way of doing the real innovative and evolutionary and revolutionary things in the county.
Contractor Tim Thomas, 45, who challenged District 2 Commissioner David Sullivan in 2012, said his priorities will be to build the Port Hadlock sewer facility and provide more support to county parks.
All three are running as Democrats.
Thomas ran against Sullivan as a Republican and relocated to District 2 so he could run for the seat.
Sullivan, 64, announced his intention to run for a fourth term in March.
He has not drawn opposition so far.
Jefferson County Republican Chair Steve Crosby said Friday that he did not know of any party-affiliated candidate running for either commissioner seat.
“We’ve put out a call for people to run as Republicans and will offer them financial support, but no one has come forward,” Crosby said.
PUD
In the PUD District 1 contest, incumbent Barney Burke, 60, said he plans to file Monday for a second six-year term.
Burke was unopposed in the 2010 election but this year has drawn an opponent, Jeff Randall, 49, of Port Townsend, who is new to politics other than his active support of two recent bond issues that passed by wide margins.
Superior Court Judge Keith Harper, 62, said he plans to run for a second four-year term.
No opposition has emerged.
24th District
State Sen. Jim Hargrove, D-Hoquiam, announced earlier this year that he will not run for another four-year term.
In March, state Rep. Kevin Van De Wege, D-Sequim, declared his intention to run for Hargrove’s seat. Van De Wege said Friday that he plans to file to run for the Senate seat Wednesday.
Tammy Ramsay, 48, of Hoquiam has announced her intention to run as a Democrat for Van De Wege’s legislative seat.
She will face off in the August primary against Mike Chapman, also a Democrat and a Clallam County commissioner.
State Rep. Steve Tharinger, D-Sequim, a three-term incumbent Democrat, said Friday he plans to file for re-election Monday. He was not aware of any challengers.
Statewide, 346 offices are open for election, including 90 filing with the secretary of state.
The secretary of state will accept filings for federal and statewide candidates, the state Supreme Court and all legislative and judicial offices encompassing more than one county.
County election departments will handle all other filings.
The filing fee is 1 percent of one year’s salary for the office sought. Examples are the U.S. Senate or House, $1,740; governor, $1,718.98; Legislature, $454.74; state Supreme Court, $1,794.32.
For county information, see http://tinyurl.com/PDN-jeffersonelections.
For state information, see http://tinyurl.com/jofpft4.
________
Jefferson County Editor Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or cbermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
