PORT LUDLOW — A candidate surprised that he is in a race to unseat state Rep. Kevin Van De Wege said he won’t be available for much of the election season since his work requires him to be out to sea for a month at a time.
Craig Durgan, 55, a maritime engineer from Port Ludlow, gained enough write-in votes in the Aug. 7 primary election to qualify for the Nov. 6 general election ballot in the 24th Legislative District race against incumbent Van De Wege, who had been unopposed.
The 937 write-in votes that he received in the district — which covers Jefferson and Clallam counties and part of Grays Harbor County — represent 1 percent of the district’s electorate.
The votes were unsolicited, Durgan said.
“It was a surprise to me,” he said. “It wasn’t anything that I was actively pursuing.
“I got 1 percent of the vote, and that was enough to get on the ballot.”
Durgan said he got notice from the Washington Secretary of State on Monday that his name will be on the general election ballot.
He said Thursday that his work schedule with Noble International requires him to be away from the area from Sept. 10 to Oct. 10, after which he will be in town until just after the election.
“I’ll campaign when I can, but I’m not going to give up my job for what might be a wing and a prayer,” Durgan said.
“The main issues this year are the same as they were in 2010: the economy and property rights.”
Durgan ran unsuccessfully against Van De Wege, a Democrat from Sequim, in the primary election in 2010.
Then, he ran as a Republican.
This time, he will be listed on the ballot as having no party preference.
Durgan said he was not aware of any organized effort to place him on the ballot, but Van De Wege said he anticipated the action.
“I heard a few months ago that this was happening,” Van De Wege said.
Van De Wege is convinced the write-in campaign is the result of an organized effort.
“One percent is a pretty low bar to get on the ballot,” he said.
“And if he conducts a write-in, he doesn’t have to pay the $400 filing fee.”
Van De Wege said the opposition won’t prompt any changes in his campaign for a fourth term.
“I’m not going to do anything differently,” he said.
“I’m going to attend all of the forums and answer any questions the voters might have.”
Durgan also will make himself available to voters but has not decided about attending forums.
“People can call me up, and I’ll come out and talk to them,” he said.
As in 2010, Durgan said he will not accept campaign donations.
At that time, Durgan was running with fellow-Republican Port Ludlow resident Larry Carter, who then was seeking Rep. Steve Tharinger’s seat.
This election, Carter is challenging five-term incumbent Sen. James Hargrove of the 24th Legislative District.
Carter is accepting campaign donations.
“It’s very hard to run a campaign without any money, especially when you are opposing special interests like unions and tribes,” Carter said.
Like Durgan, Carter is running without a party preference this election.
“I’ve been a Democrat and a Republican in the past, but I don’t want to be associated with either party right now,” Carter said.
“They’ve kind of tarred and feathered each other.”
Durgan received 860 votes in Clallam County, 58 in Jefferson County and 19 in Grays Harbor County, according to the county election websites.
Jefferson County Elections Supervisor Karen Cartmel said several other votes apparently were cast on Durgan’s behalf but were not counted because his name was misspelled.
“Unless the spelling is exact, it’s not in the total,” she said.
“’Graig Durgan’ doesn’t count.”
General election ballots will be mailed to the military Sept. 21 and to all other registered voters Oct. 17, Cartmel said.
Ballots will be printed after candidates for the presidential election are certified Sept. 7.
Jefferson County Reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
