Although the top spenders won their 24th District seats in the state Legislature, that wasn’t true for the candidate who spent the most per vote in a Jefferson County race.
Port Ludlow Republican Jim Boyer spent $3.02 per vote, more than any candidate in any North Olympic Peninsula county race, in a losing effort to upset incumbent County Commissioner John Austin, a Democrat.
Austin, 69, of Port Ludlow, defeated Boyer, 64, a homebuilder, with 9,708 votes, or 58 percent, to 7,085 votes, or 42 percent.
Austin spent $22,307, or $2.30 a vote.
Jefferson County candidates spent at least $60,303, according to state Public Disclosure Commission reports and candidate interviews. The county total does not include District Court Judge Jill Landes’ campaign expenses, which were unavailable.
Candidates in Clallam County spent a total of $92,819.
North Olympic Peninsula candidates — not including those who failed to make it through the Aug. 17 primary — spent a total of $153,122 in two races in Jefferson County and four races in Clallam County.
In races for 24th Legislative District Positions 1 and 2, four candidates spent a combined $260,885, with Democratic winners Steve Tharinger and Kevin Van De Wege — who combined spent $184,987 — outspending their Republican opponents, who spent a combined $75,898, by more than 2 to 1.
The 24th District includes Clallam and Jefferson counties and about half of Grays Harbor County, but 80 percent of the district’s 84,000 voters live in Clallam and Jefferson.
Who got the most votes for the money in the Nov. 2 general election?
In Jefferson County, that would be Democrat Scott Rosekrans, 58, of Port Townsend, who spent $6,622, or 67 cents per vote, to beat Port Townsend attorney Paul Richmond, 49, who spent $3,700, or 61 cents per vote.
In Clallam County, it’s political newcomer and the county’s new treasurer Selinda Barkhuis, who spent $2,134, or 15 cents a vote, to defeat incumbent Judy Scott, who spent 36 cents a vote.
The final PDC reporting date for election campaigns is Dec. 10.
Here is a breakdown of campaign expenditures as of Oct. 26, with a focus on cost per vote according to votes counted as of Friday.
24th District Position 1
Van De Wege, 36, of Sequim, is a two-term incumbent who defeated Dan Gase, 57, of Port Angeles, 34,818 votes, or 56 percent, to 27,182 votes, or 44 percent.
Van De Wege, a fire fighter and paramedic, spent $89,774, or $2.58 per vote, while Gase spent $35,524, or $1.31 per vote.
Van De Wege’s expenditures included $15,100 in payroll for a campaign manager and $5,159 to WinPower Strategies, a Seattle political consultant firm.
Gase, a real estate managing broker and consultant, spent $6,064 for signs, including yard signs.
“We were definitely on a shoestring,” said Gase, who lost 18 pounds during the campaign, much of it walking district neighborhoods and ringing doorbells.
Together, the candidates for the position spent $125,298.
24th District Position 2
Tharinger, 61, a Clallam County commissioner and Sequim resident, defeated Jim McEntire, 60, a Port of Port Angeles commissioner who also lives in Sequim, 32,143 votes, or 52 percent, to 29,328 votes, or 48 percent.
Tharinger spent $95,213, or $2.96 per vote compared to McEntire, who spent $40,374, or $1.38 per vote.
Tharinger’s expenditures included $34,335 to WinPower Strategies — $408 of which was for those interruptive “robo-calls,” or automated phone messages — and $7,262 to ISE Consultants of Port Townsend for campaign management.
McEntire’s largest expenses included $8,341 for radio advertising, most of it in Port Angeles.
Together, the candidates for the position spent $135,587.
County Commissioner District 3
Combined, Austin and Boyer spent $43,697 on the race for the District 3 county commission seat.
Austin spent $5,420 on newspaper advertising and $3,301 for postage.
“Fortunately, we didn’t have radio and TV expenses,” Austin said.
Boyer spent $6,853 for the direct-mail services of Valpak, the coupon-distribution company.
“It was a cost-effective way to reach a lot of households,” Boyer said.
Prosecuting attorney
Rosekrans, the deputy prosecuting attorney for Jefferson County, defeated Richmond, who did not state a party preference, with 9,869 votes, or 62 percent, to 6,021 votes, or 38 percent, in the race for the prosecuting attorney/coroner seat.
Because Richmond spent less than $5,000 in his campaign, he is not required to file expenditure and contribution reports with the PDC.
He reported the amount of his spending in an interview.
The combined total of candidates’ spending was $10,322.
Rosekrans’ expenses included $2,015 for advertising and $650 for double-sides signs that he called “dang expensive.”
Richmond spent about $1,000 for campaign signs, he said.
“I feel OK about what I did with what I had,” said Richmond, a Port Townsend attorney.
District Court judge
District Court Judge Landes, of Port Townsend, defeated Port Townsend attorney John Wood with 7,956 votes, or 54 percent, to 6,681 votes, or 46 percent.
Neither Landes, 60, nor Wood, 66, returned calls requesting for comment for this article.
Wood spent $6,284, or 94 cents per vote.
Landes told the PDC she expected to spend less than $5,000. It is not known how much she spent.
Candidates must make campaign spending records available for only eight days after the election.
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Senior Writer Paul Gottlieb can be reached at 360-417-3536 or at paul.gottlieb@peninsuladailynews.com.
