A Look At Chelan County Commissioner Races On First Day of Filing Week
Plus advice for candidates from outgoing Commissioner Tiffany Gering, as well as a reminder why everyone should pay attention to their county commissioners
Filing week is when the rubber hits the road in Washington State electoral politics.
Although many candidates have already announced their intentions to run, from May 6 through 10 they must officially register with the Washington Secretary of State’s Office.
And while a majority of the attention is put on the state legislature and senate races, county commissioner races are also important.
“A county commissioner has the power to effect SO much change in SO many ways,” Chelan County Commissioner Tiffany Gering wrote in an email. “We act as the executive and legislative branches for the county. We are responsible for budgeting and appropriation of funds for the entirety of the county.”
To put that in perspective, Chelan County’s budget for this year is $59.6 million.
Gering isn’t running for re-election, but I reached out to her to about her experience and what advice she has for others seeking a commissioner’s seat.
DB: What are some of the things you learned during your time as a county commissioner?
TG: 1. It is difficult to be a politician without being political. Most elected officials have an agenda and they come to the table ready to sell those particular agendas. This has been incredibly frustrating for me because, often times, minds are made up before facts are shared and/or discussion has occurred. 2. The only oversight elected officials have is from the press and the constituents we serve. Unfortunately, most people aren’t paying close enough attention. 3. It’s been said that good people don’t stay in politics. I didn’t believe this at first, but entering my fourth year, I certainly do now.
DB: What advice do you have for others who might want to serve in that capacity?
TG: Your position will not love you back, always prioritize your family first. You will read more in this position than you ever read in college, or in your life for that matter. If you don’t love learning, this isn’t the position for you. Every day will be different, embrace the variety. Learn to be ok with never pleasing everyone. With that said, make sure you create healthy boundaries to ensure you are not treated poorly by the very constituents you are doing your best to serve.
Four men have filed to run for the seat Gering is leaving behind, position 3, which represents the citizens of North Wenatchee, Sunnyslope, Entiat, Chelan, and Manson. All four are Republicans, and the best known among them is Brad Hawkins, who is currently serving in the Washington State Senate representing the 12th District.
Court-ordered redistricting has changed the electoral map, and that’s one of the reasons Hawkins cites in his decision not to seek re-election.
“With our wildly reconfigured district now extending far away from home, I realized that I need to refocus on my family and opportunities for local service,” he wrote. “Winning re-election to the Senate, while likely, would have taken me far outside this area, leaving my family home alone on many nights. Upon re-election, I’d be leaving them again for a long session in Olympia. It just didn’t make sense, especially with such an awesome opportunity to serve right here, working exclusively for us.”
Hawkins enters the race competing against Manson native Chris Willoughby, Wenatchee Valley developer Flint Hartwig, and former legislative assistant Brandt Cappell, who worked for 12th District reps Cary Condotta and Keith Goehner, respectively.
Willoughby has three decades of experience as a Volunteer Firefighter/EMT and currently serves as a Chelan County Fire District 5 Fire Commissioner. His background is also in agriculture and he manages a family orchard in Manson. According to his announcement letter, promoting tourism, boosting affordable housing and tackling high property taxes are his priorities.
“Public service is a passion for me,” he wrote. "Every positive should be embraced, every problem has a solution. It is how one resolves the problem that is important. Problem solving and implementation of solutions is a must in farming, and emergency services, and this is where I feel my strengths are, in problem solving."
Hartwig was born in a one-room garage in Colville and for a time his family lived in a tipi before his father moved his family to Peru. When he was five they moved to Honduras where his dad worked for Habitat for Humanity. His mother worked with UNICEF on public health and education initiatives designed to combat parasites and increase hygiene among midwives delivering babies.
When he was a teen, his parents moved the family to Leavenworth.
“The only school ever did was one year in high school in Leavenworth,” he said. “I dropped out and started working in a mechanic shop.”
He moved out at 17 to get a full-time job at Les Schwab and by 21 he was managing the shop, but he admitted he wasn’t mature enough to handle it and treated employees poorly. He lost that job, moved to Wenatchee, bought a small house and “flipped it.” In addition to that he started doing small construction projects he found on Craigslist and eventually built it into a construction company called Eider Construction.
He said he’s running because he feels like customer service and professionalism are not priorities for some county departments, like community development.
“Some of the attitudes from some of the departments it's like ‘we're the government you're the people’ and I think it should be the other way around,” he said. “We're the people who live here. We're the people who pay the bills. We're the people who expect to get something for our money.”
Hartwig said he wants to see more fiscal responsibility from the county commissioners and cited a recent decision to pay a company called ALTA nearly $1.5 million to study a paved pathways project as an example of misguided spending.
“I'm all for trails. That's fine if the people want it and the people are willing to pay for it,” he said. “I don't think you should spend a million and a half dollars to an out-of-town company when we have people right here to go ahead and tell us where to put the trails.”
Cappell is the only man under 40 in the race and he said he’s running because he wants a better future for his young family. He wants to be the person you turn to when you feel wronged by the government, and while he doesn’t want to make broad, unrealistic promises, he said he does want to confront issues like inflation and onerous regulations as much as possible.
“We all feel the increase in prices on our budgets. I want to ensure the county isn’t adding to the burden by committing to fiscally responsible budgeting. Our farmers are struggling with higher costs and increased state and federal regulations. The county can’t change these regulations, but I can advocate for the backbone of our economy in Olympia and DC,” Cappell wrote in an email. “We need to balance the growth of our tourism industry with the community's needs. Around 75% of the sales tax generated in the Lake Chelan Valley comes from tourism. Lodging is needed for these visitors, yet we struggle with housing for our workers who support this industry. It’s a balance that I continue to work on.”
All agree that the role county commissioners play, especially in rural America, is important and impacts every citizen every day in one way or another. They oversee the county administrator, economic services, community development, natural resources, the county jail and public works. Each commissioner also sits on 10-12 committees and boards in the region and in this way, they influence other entities with budgets that can run in the tens of millions.
A Look At Position 1
While the field of candidates vying to replace Gering is bustling, no one has stepped up to challenge Position 1 incumbent Kevin Overbay.
If re-elected this will be his third term as a Chelan County Commissioner, and he credits his longevity to an adherence to the four C’s – Coordination, Collaboration, Cooperation and Communication.
“I hope that I have shown, over the past two terms, that I have represented the residents of Chelan County equally,” he wrote in an email. “That I have listened and addressed concerns, that I have fulfilled my promise of being a fulltime commissioner dedicated to serving all of the residents of Chelan County. That I have continued to be proactive working to find solutions to the many social issues of substance use disorder, mental health, and homelessness. Understanding that as a member of the Board of Commissioners I am working toward addressing the future needs of our citizens regarding transportation needs, community safety through forest health measures, as well as economic opportunities all while looking for ways to reduce the tax burden of our residents as local governments continue to face the challenges of unfunded mandates sent down from the legislature.”
The boards he has served on are numerous and varied.
They include:
Aging and Adult Care of NCW
Chelan Douglas Health District
Chelan Douglas Transportation Council
Chelan Douglas Homeless Housing Task Force
Link Transit – Also sits on the finance Subcommittee
Stemilt Partnership
RiverCom
Chelan County Disability Board
Washington Counties Risk Pool
Washington State Association of Counties Legislative Steering Committee for both State and Federal Legislation, as well as the By-laws sub-committee
Our Valley Our Future
Overbay, like Gering and the candidates vying to replace her, agree that commissioners are important – but they can be overlooked.
For those considering a run for a county commissioner seat, Overbay also shared some advice.
“Do your homework! Understand that in the position of Commissioner, your number one charge is to serve the residents equally and without favor. Understand the issues and be willing to change your position on a topic if new information comes to light. Be flexible and willing to serve long hours. Remember the residents did not elect you to represent yourself but to represent them,” he wrote. “Build relationships and practice the four C’s. You will need to handle criticism as it is part of the job. With every decision there will always be those who will criticize the decision you make, always strive to provide your reason for the decision so those you serve know the reason while they may not agree they will know why you made the decision you made. Last but not least, be a Public Servant not a Politician. There truly is a difference.”
According to the Washington State Public Disclosure Commission, Hawkins has raised $41,850, Cappell $2,022, Hartwig $100 and Willoughby has not submitted any financial information.
Overbay has not recorded any donations yet.
I’d like to thank Commissioner Gering for her input on this piece and for her service to Chelan County.
In a follow-up piece, I’ll highlight the Douglas and Okanogan County Commissioner races and the candidates who have filed to run for those seats. We’ll also take a look back at the colorful history of Kyle Steinberg’s turn as a Douglas County Commissioner.
Does Brad Hawkins no longer live in East Wenatchee? Or does where you live not matter in these elections?