It’s a short ballot, but some registered voters in Southwest Washington have a decision or two to make in Washington’s Aug. 5 primary.
There are contested city council races this year in Vancouver, Battle Ground, Camas, and Woodland, and Vancouver’s popular mayor Anne McEnerny-Ogle faces a challenge. But only one of those races will be on the primary ballot. That’s because under Washington’s “top two” primary, nonpartisan local races advance directly to the November general election when there are two or fewer candidates vying for an office. And this year, just one local race has three candidates: Vancouver City Council Position 1.
That makes for a shorter than usual union voter guide — local labor organizations are making just three recommendations.
Vancouver City Council Position 1
Kim D Harless, the incumbent, has held the office since 2022. Harless works at the Native American Youth and Family Center as a policy advocacy and community engagement manager. This year she faces challengers Pooneh Gray and Ron Willis. The top two vote-getters will appear on the November ballot. Her campaign is endorsed by SW Washington Central Labor Council and Fire Fighters Local 452 VoteKimHarless.com
Clark County Prop 1
Proposition 1 would fund Vancouver area libraries. Fort Vancouver Regional Library District is an inter-county library district that provides library service to 550,000 people across a 4,200-square-mile district including all of Clark County and parts of Klickitat, Skamania, and Cowlitz counties. And 96% of its revenue comes from a local property tax levy. Proposition 1 would restore the levy at its former rate of $0.50 per $1,000 of assessed value. That’s because owing to a quirk of Washington tax law, total revenues can only increase by 1% a year, so the tax rate is adjusted downward when property values increase. The rate was $0.50 in 2011 but has dropped to less than $0.27 currently. The measure has the endorsement of the Southwest Washington Central Labor Council and IBEW Local 48.
Longview City Council, Position 7
Wayne Nichols retired in 2017 after 41 years at the Weyerhaeuser mill. For decades he served as a union officer negotiating union contracts as part of Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers. He’s one of two candidates challenging incumbent Spencer Boudreau; the other is Marianne Chambers, former ad director at The Daily News. His campaign has the endorsement of the Cowlitz-Wahkiakum Central Labor Council and IBEW Local 48. wayne4longview.com
