Neophyte candidates for County Council and state senator aren't daunted by long odds and experienced opponents
By Pat Jenkins/The Dispatch
For his first run for public office, Corey Drury is up against two opponents who between them have won 13 elections and served 38 years in office.
And he doesn't feel the least bit overmatched.
"I just have to work that much harder" to win votes, said Drury, a 25-year-old Republican candidate for Position 3 on the Pierce County Council.
For voters in the Graham and Eatonville areas, Drury is one of two third-wheel candidates in this fall's election. The other is Jim Vaughn, a Republican running for state senator in the Second District. Both of them are political newcomers in races where the opposition is much better known and far more experienced in the political world and at campaigning.
State Rep. Jim McCune, a Republican, and Democrat Marilyn Rasmussen are the bigger-name candidates in the council race.
McCune is leaving the Legislature because redistricting - a process required by law that reshapes legislative districts to balance their populations - left him outside the Second District, which he represented for 10 years.
Rasmussen, meanwhile, is continuing her attempts at a political comeback after her own long tenure as a state legislator (22 years) that ended in 2008 with her loss in a bid for re-election to the Senate. She tried in the 2010 election to unseat McCune but lost. She also was an Eatonville School Board member for six years in the 1980s.
McCune and Drury will run against each other in the primary election in August, with the top votegetter moving ahead to face Rasmussen in the general election in November.
Vaughn has a similar scenario - a primary race against Sen. Randi Becker, who is seeking her second four-year term, and another experienced campaigner, Democrat Bruce Lachney, awaiting the Becker-Vaughn winner for the November runoff. Lachney lost a race in 2010 for County Council. He also is a former Eatonville School Board member.
A former military analyst who has a small farm in Orting and runs a business that helps military veterans find jobs, Vaughn is positioning himself as a non-establishment candidate. He's critical of the state's budget and its tax structure and insists on different approaches to both.
In campaign statements, Vaugh has said, "I am not going to Olympia to be politically correct and participate in the standard business practices that have our state in a financial disaster."
Drury, too, sees his lack of experience in elected office as a plus when he's compared to McCune and Rasmussen. "We need a fresh face, not a career politician," he said.
His age, which is less than half of his opponents, and his lack of name familiarity with voters don't have to hinder him, either, Drury said.
"I have to knock on five times as many doors and stand at more intersections to get noticed," he said. "It's about who will work the hardest. My opponents might have more experience, but they won't outwork me."
The Spanaway-area resident is an engineer for Pacific Northwest Backing in Sumner. Growing up, he was drawn to political science and similar courses at Spanaway High School and Pierce College. That background drew him into the council race.
"In my job, I know the importance of good management and spending money wisely," he said. "And I've always been interested in politics. So when I saw that (Councilman Roger Bush, unable to seek re-election because of term limits) wasn't running, I considered it an opportunity to get involved and try to make a positive change."
Legislature
State senator (four-year term)
James E. Vaughn (Republican)
(253) 241-9634
jvaughn50@comcast.net
Randi Becker (Republican)
(360) 832-2926
rbecker873@hotmail.com
Bruce L. Lachney (Democratic)
(253) 405-7525
blachney@peoplepc.com
State representative Position 1 (two-year term)
Gary Alexander (Republican)
(360) 951-7243
alexandergary@comcast.net
Greg Hartman (Democrat)
(360) 872-0404
gp23018@comcast.net
State representative Position 2 (two-year term)
J.T. Wilcox (Republican)
(360) 458-6903
jt@jtwilcox.org
Pierce County
Executive (four-year term)
Pat McCarthy (Democrat)
(253) 414-1798
info@reelectpatmccarthy.com
Bruce Minker (No party preference)
(253) 381-2707
BDMinker@hotmail.com
Assessor-treasurer (four-year term, non-partisan)
Billie O'Brien
(253) 579-6626
billie@obrienforassessor-treasurer.com
Mike Lonergan
(253) 759-3252
mike@mikelonerganforassessor.com
Tim Farrell
(206) 431-8081
timfarrell.us@gmail.com
Spiro Manthou
(253) 677-1114
Spiro.Manthou@gmail.com
Dale Washam
(253) 840-3567
hirewasham@yahoo.com
Sheriff (four-year term, non-partisan)
Paul Pastor
(253) 377-5390
sheriff.pastor@gmail.com
County Council No. 2
Joyce McDonald
(Prefers Republican Party)
joycemcdonald@comcast.net
(253) 770-80612
Daniel (J.R.) Wikane (Republican)
JRWikane@gmail.com
(253) 606-3745
Jeffery Hogan (Republican)
Jeff@votejeffhogan.com
(253) 279-3238
County Council No. 3 (four-year term)
Jim McCune (Republican)
(253) 732-0519
electmccune@gmail.com
Corey J. Drury (Republican)
(253) 255-6933
cdrury86@aol.com
Marilyn Rasmussen (Democrat)
(253) 847-3276
County Council No. 4
Connie Ladenburg (Democrat)
connie@connieladenburg.com
(253) 208-6522
Ken J. Grassi (Republican)
grassisfg@aol.com
(253) 278-1946
Chris Nye (Republican)
Vote4nye@gmail.com
(253) 380-4078
Sharon Benson (Democrat)
sharon@sharon4council.com
(253) 223-7159
County Council No. 6
Ann Dasch (Democrat)
daschforpiercecc@aol.com
(253) 884-4838
Doug Richardson (Republican)
council_man@hotmail.com
(253) 581-9475
Superior Court
Position 1
James R. Orlando
james.orlando94@yahoo.com
(253) 565-1219
Position 2
Katherine M. Stolz
katherinestolz@q.com
(253) 756-0434
Position 3
Christine Quinn-Brintnall
chris@QBappeals.org
(253) 219-0481
Thomas P. Larkin
mlarkinhome@yahoo.com
(253) 732-4584
Position 4
Bryan Chushcoff
bryan4judge@gmail.com
(253) 759-9279
Position 5
John (Jack) H. Hill
jhhill3@comcast.net
(253) 318-3336
Vicki L. Hogan
JudgeVickiHogan@nventure.com
(253) 370-6934
Position 6
Jack Nevin
J.Nevin@comcast.net
(253) 732-8865
Position 7
Bev Grant
judgebevgrant@comcast.net
(253) 302-3138
Jerry Costello
jerry@electjerrycostello.org
(253) 686-4428
Position 8
Brian Tollefson
RetainJudgeBrianTollefson@live.com
(253) 389-0071
Position 9
Edmund Murphy
emmurphy76@gmail.com
(253) 303-2934
Position 10
Gary Johnson
ccolywa@aol.com
(253) 229-9466
Position 11
John McCarthy
johnmccarthy251@hotmail.com
(253) 677-3377
Position 12
Antoni H. Froehling
tonifroehling@gmail.com
(253) 208-8494
Stephanie Arend
Stephanie@reelectjudgearend.com
(253) 306-5882
Position 13
James A. Schoenberger, Jr.
Jimschoe@me.com
(253) 444-3111
Kathryn Nelson
kjudge512@gmail.com
(253) 973-8030
Position 14
Susan Keers Serko
sue@serko.net
(253) 383-5388
Position 15
Thomas J. Felnagle
tomdebbyfelnagle@harbornet.com
(253) 565-2218
Position 16
Elizabeth P. Martin
elizabethpikemartin@gmail.com
(253) 278-2272
Position 17
Ronald E. Culpepper
culpepperr2004@yahoo.com
(253) 566-4162
Position 18
G. Helen Whitener
Stan Rumbaugh
sjrumbaugh@aol.com
(253) 318-4621
Position 19
Linda CJ Lee
lindacjlee@comcast.net
(253) 224-3442
Position 20
Kitty-Ann van Doorninck
kajajv@harbornet.com
(253) 593-6022
Position 21
Frank E. Cuthbertson
fcuthbe@gmail.com
(253) 759-7416
Judge Position 22
John R. Hickman
wcheese2@aol.com
(360) 402-1058
Comments
Use the comment form below to begin a discussion about this content.
Sign in to comment