Ciudad de Pullman

Deb McNeil is running for mayor of Pullman to replace Glenn Johnson, who is retiring. She is a retired teacher in Pullman and she owned and operated the Quilted Heart downtown for 17 years. She is also a master gardener and serves on the board of the WSU Center for Civic Engagement.

McNeil wants to use her experience running a small business to attract and grow more retail options in the city. She is also committed to deploying a new comprehensive plan to guide the city's growth, including doing more to reduce the cost of housing for young professionals. McNeil is also focused on improving the city's water and sewer infrastructure and looking for ways to improve sustainability as the region grapples with water shortages.

McNeil is running against former city council member Francis Benjamin. He taught at WSU for 35 years and is the former president of the Association of Washington Cities. Benjamin wants to make Pullman a welcoming place to live as the city continues to grow. Benjamin also wants the city to do more to promote public and performing arts by creating an arts district and hosting festivals.

We recommend McNeil for mayor of Pullman because of her years of community engagement and strong endorsements.

Ann Parks is running to continue representing Ward 1 on the Pullman City Council, where she has served since 2016. Parks is an insurance representative for State Farm, and has held numerous leadership positions for organizations like United Way, Neill Public Library, and Whitman County Democrats.

Parks has not published a current policy platform as of October, but in the past, she has prioritized adding more public spaces and accessibility for people with disabilities downtown. Housing is also a priority for her - she supports creating attainable housing programs, and developing Pullman in a way that creates homes that every resident can afford. She additionally supports development that considers impacts on traffic and the environment. 

In the past, Parks has supported expanding police and enacting stricter restrictions on marijuana businesses.

Challenging her is Folk musician Dan Maher. Maher was the host and producer of "Inland Folk," a long-running Spokane Public Radio show. He also worked at Washington State University (WSU) for over 40 years as a student advisor.

Maher admitted to an unprofessional relationship with a WSU student in 2018, when the student came forward with records of his romantically-laced text and inappropriate behavior. As a result of this, he was asked to retire early from WSU, and "Inland Folk" was dropped from the radio shortly afterwards.

Maher has not published a campaign website or any details about his policy priorities as of October. 

Because of her years of experience in public service and her opponent's history of inappropriate behavior, Parks is the best choice for Pullman City Council in Ward 1.

 

Carla Marcela De Lira is running unopposed to represent Ward 2, Position 2 on the Pullman City Council. Her opponent, incumbent Becky Dueben, bowed out of the race because of her growing workload, and has given her support for De Lira's campaign.

De Lira is a computer science PhD candidate at Washington State University (WSU), where she recently earned a graduate certificate in education. She was highly engaged in organizing as a student, participating as a senator in the association for graduate and professional students, organizing a camp for young programmers, and successfully unionizing with her fellow workers at WSU.

De Lira's experience as a Latina in STEM and a first-generation college student have inspired her to advocate for others from working class and BIPOC communities. De Lira helped develop and instruct several programs that supported undergraduate students from underrepresented groups that are in the biomedical, engineering, and computer science fields. She believes the union she fought for at WSU will make college more inclusive for higher education workers who are struggling to make ends meet while pursuing their PhDs.

De Lira does not have a website or policy platform as of October, but we believe she is the best choice in this race.