Pierce County

Michelle Rylands is an Army veteran and PTA president running against incumbent Senator Phil Fortunato. She is strongly in favor of fully funding K-12 education, and also advocates for fixing our state's upside-down tax code and helping local small businesses.

Fortunato was chosen by Republicans to replace long-time senator Pam Roach. While he is very conservative on many issues, he deserves credit for playing a key role in breaking the final state budget impasse this year by pushing his Republican colleagues to fund the contracts of state employees. Nevertheless, Rylands is the best choice in this race.

Edgewood City Councilmember Nate Lowry is a landscape architect who has been a strong progressive voice in the community. He's running for the 31st District House seat to fix Washington's upside-down tax code and fund Head Start and STEM education. He is running against Republican Morgan Irwin, who was recently appointed to this seat and has not demonstrated progressive values. Lowry is the better choice in this race.

John McCarthy is running for the Tacoma Port Commissioner Position 1 against army veteran and port security specialist Eric Holdman. McCarthy served as a Tacoma Port Commissioner from 1983 to 1992, and a Pierce County District Court judge for 22 years. While McCarthy is not the most progressive candidate, his previous experience and community involvement makes him the best choice in this race.

Elected in 2014, financial manager Nancy Backus is the first female mayor of Auburn. Prior to her first term, she served on the city council for 10 years as Chair of the Finance Committee and the Planning & Community Development Committee. Backus' first term is backed by an impressive list of accomplishments. Backus has made economic development a priority, including welcoming new small businesses to the downtown area, launching a downtown facade improvement program, and seeking additional expansion from Boeing. As a result, unemployment in Auburn is among the lowest in the state. In 2016, the mayor led the charge for a homelessness task force and the city is currently working on 40 of the 56 recommendations issued by the task force, including extending availability at the emergency shelter.

Backus is running against city councilmember and deputy mayor Largo Wales. Wales' campaign is focused on public safety and funding local infrastructure, but her platform also includes anti-homeless measures such as moving all care and housing programs away from the central areas and into industrial zones.

Backus' leadership has earned her another term.

Yolanda Trout-Manuel is running unopposed to retain her seat in Position 4. She serves as Chair of the Finance Committee and she is a well-known advocate for traffic safety and for her domestic violence work. She received a 2015 Outstanding Award from the local Domestic Violence Task Force and an Outstanding Citizen Activist Award for Excellence in Traffic Safety from the Washington Traffic Safety Commissioners for her work on Washington's Highway 12. Trout-Manuel serves on several regional and national boards, including the Puget Sound Latino Chamber of Commerce, Hispanic Elective Legislative Officials, and the National League of Cities. She plans to focus the upcoming years on homelessness, public safety, and the economic health of Auburn.

U.S. Navy veteran Larry Brown is the Legislative and Political Director for the Aerospace Machinists District Lodge 751. A strong advocate for workers, Brown has worked on the Governor’s Unemployment Task Force and the labor caucus for the Labor and Industries Workers Comp Advisory Committee. He is running on a jobs agenda that seeks to reduce commute times for workers, emphasize education and workforce training, and bring in more technology jobs.

Brown is opposed by Mike Kahler, a manager at the Auburn Valley Humane Society’s Thrift Store. Kahler promotes an enforcement of the city's anti-loitering and panhandling laws to force the homeless from storefronts.

Brown's experience and commitment to progressive values makes him the clear choice for Auburn City Council Position 6.

Jill Guernsey is running for re-election for Mayor of Gig Harbor. Guernsey is a former school board member and former city councilmember who has delivered results for residents during her first term as mayor. She has prioritized finding pragmatic solutions for the city's traffic problems and increasing development in the city. Guernsey has been recognized for her leadership at the local level and her ability negotiate beneficial outcomes on behalf of the residents of Gig Harbor.

Guernsey is running against local business owner Kit Kuhn. While Kuhn has a solid vision for Gig Harbor, he lacks Guernsey's public service experience that is necessary for the job. Guernsey is the smart choice in this race.

Incumbent Heather Shadko is serving her first term on the Puyallup City Council. She is a contracts manager for the Port of Tacoma, and has served as Chair of the Puyallup Library Board, and a member and vice-chair of the Planning Commission. Shadko's time on the council has been positive - fighting for humane treatment of the homeless, supporting Puyallup as Washington's second pollinator-friendly "Bee City," and advocating for public open space.

She is running against Cynthia Jacobsen, a math teacher at Pierce College. A fiscal conservative, her main campaign goals are mitigating population growth issues, fiscal responsibility, and working with charities and regional governments to address homelessness.

Shadko is the experienced, progressive pick for this position.

Julie Door is running for reelection to the Puyallup City Council District 3, Position 2 seat. Door was first elected to the city council in 2013. Since then, she has made strengthening the economy on behalf of working families one of her main priorities. On the council, Door supported the purchase of the Van Lierop farm to create a new park, implemented a Safe Routes to Schools initiative, and has worked on securing adequate shelter for the homeless in inclement weather. Door works with the Pierce County Opioid Task Force. She is the community services chair of the Puyallup Kiwanis Club and a board member of the South Sound 911 Board, among other community involvement.

Her opponent, Jeremy Hamel, is a DJ whose campaign focuses on curbing non-local development buyers and mitigating traffic issues. He has no political or community organization experience. Door is the best choice in this race.

Catherine Ushka is the president of the Tacoma School Board and is running for the Tacoma City Council District 4 seat. Ushka has served in the U.S. Navy, and as Vice President of the Tacoma Charter Review, Commissioner for the City of Tacoma Human Services Commission, and on the Executive Team and Steering Committee for the Eastside Community Center. Her campaign is focused on public safety, housing, and sustainable career paths. She advocated against State Initiative 1515, which would repeal non-discrimination protections for transgender people in housing, employment, and schools.

Her opponent, real estate developer Kevin Grossman, is a former Shoreline City Councilmember and former Vice Chair of the Washington State Affordable Housing Advisory Board. His longtime work in affordable housing has put increasing housing density, neighborhood involvement, and supporting small business at the center of his campaign.

Because of her greater support from local progressive organizations, Ushka is the best choice in this race.

Community leader Chris Beale is running for Tacoma City Council Position 5. Beale is Chair of the Planning Commission and has also served as Vice Chair of the South Tacoma Neighborhood Council, as a member of Pierce County Transit’s Citizen Advisory Council, and as Board President of the local non-profit ForeverGreen Trails. Beale is advocating for more affordable housing, storm water quality maintenance, support for Safe Routes to Schools, the Neighborhood Councils, and equitable road improvements. He aims to give specific attention to South Tacoma to "address historic inequality of public investments."

Beale is running against Brian Arnold, a conservative insurance company owner and board member of the South Tacoma Business District. Arnold's campaign is focused on increased policing and community safety. Beale is the best choice in this race.

Marisa Peloquin is running for University Place School Board Director, Position #2. A retired colonel in the U.S. army and a parent of two children, Peloquin understands the value of a quality education. She is running to ensure that the children of working families are supported academically and have access to the resources they need to build a bright future. She is a local community leader and an outspoken advocate for inclusive communities, safe neighborhoods, and social equality.

Marisa Peloquin is running against Nate Angelo, who has not released a detailed platform that explains his vision for University Place schools. Peloquin is the best choice in this race.