City of Puyallup

Democrat Jamie Smith is challenging incumbent Paul Herrera for the Pierce County Council, District 2 seat. Smith has spent nearly two decades teaching high school at local public schools, and she works as a youth sports coach. Additionally, she serves as an elected executive board member with the Puyallup Education Association.

Smith has a progressive vision for a vibrant county with a strong community, a healthy economy, and a unique character. She wants to build bridges between law enforcement and mental health care professionals to create collaborative community safety. If elected, Smith would also build affordable housing so that people of all income levels can find a home, as well as invest in our school district to develop successful future generations and protect our local ecosystem. She has earned impressive support in this race, including from local city and county council members.

Republican incumbent Paul Herrera is running for another term on the county council. Herrera is an army veteran and served as a police sergeant for the Puyallup Tribe for more than two decades. In this campaign, he wants to bring his military and law enforcement expertise to the council. However, he places less emphasis on the things that we know keep our communities safe: affordable housing, health care, and good wages.

We recommend Jamie Smith in this race to bring community-focused progress to Pierce County Council in District 2.
 

Shellie Willis is running for Puyallup City Council in the At-Large Position which is currently held by Mayor Dean Johnson. Willis is the Senior Director of Collective Impact at a local nonprofit that supports Pierce County workforce development. She is an army veteran and serves as the CEO of her own organization that provides services and support to servicewomen, women veterans, and military spouses as they transition out of service. Additionally, Willis is a Women Veterans Advisory Committee member for the state’s Department of Veteran Affairs and serves on the Puyallup Sumner Chamber of Commerce as the chair-elect.

If elected, Willis wants to bring Puyallup to its full potential as a city where people want to settle down, work, raise families, start businesses, and visit. She is motivated to bring resident voices to the table, collaborate with diverse stakeholders, and deliver efficient leadership. Willis is running on an inclusive platform that places people above party and emphasizes connection and ensuring everyone feels safe in the community. She has impressive endorsements in this race including from local unions, progressive organizations, and The News Tribune.

Renne Gilliam, a career and technical education teacher for the Puyallup School District, is the other candidate in this race. Gilliam has emphasized her family’s longstanding ties to Puyallup throughout this campaign, however she has yet to share a detailed campaign platform and has no campaign website as of early October.

We recommend Shellie Willis for the Puyallup City Council, At-Large Position because of her vision, proven leadership, and strong community support in this race.
 

Joe Colombo is running for Puyallup City Council, District 2, Position 1. The seat is currently occupied by John Palmer, who is not seeking re-election. Colombo works in IT project management and is active in the community, serving as a precinct committee officer, a member of the city’s Design Review & Historic Preservation Board, and a founder of the Families of Puyallup Public Schools group.

Colombo is running to bring community-centric, local solutions to the issues facing Puyallup residents. If elected, he wants to preserve farmland, establish an independent ethics commission, and work to ensure everyone feels safe in our community. Colombo wants to utilize his background in finance to steward tax dollars responsibly and ensure investments are aligned with the community's needs. Colombo’s grassroots campaign approach has earned the support of educators, labor unions, and the local Democrats in this race.

Dean Johnson, the current mayor and city council member for the at-large position, is the other candidate in this race. Johnson’s campaign priorities are more conservative and not always aligned with the needs of local residents. Johnson priorities include pet safety and a narrow approach to the housing crisis that only addresses first-time homebuyers.

Puyallup residents deserve a council member who knows that our communities are strengthened through good schools, fair wages, clean air, and quality public infrastructure. Joe Colombo is the best option in this race for Puyallup City Council, District 2, Position 1.
 

Trish Crocker is challenging Republican incumbent Joseph Romero for Puyallup School Board, Director Position 2. Crocker has worked in health and human services for nearly 25 years, including in grants management for the county. She currently serves on the executive board for the local district Democrats and volunteers with the Waller Road Parent Teacher Organization. Through both her professional and volunteer work, Crocker has dedicated herself to bringing resources and services to community members who need them the most.

Crocker is running a community-focused campaign to bring the best opportunities and learning environments to Puyallup students. If elected, she would focus on creating a positive work environment for teachers that results in a better education for students; in this vein, she wants to raise wages, limit class sizes, and ensure adequate levels of staffing. As a parent and volunteer with the school district herself, Crocker’s campaign ideas are grounded in community needs, and she has earned endorsements from many community leaders.

Real estate broker and incumbent Joseph Romero is the current president of the Puyallup School Board where he has been serving since 2019. Romero is associated with Moms for Liberty, a far-right group that seeks to impose their agenda on our schools and take away parents' decisionmaking ability for their families. He attended a Moms for Liberty event this summer when attendees applauded being labeled a hate group. The extent of his conservative beliefs is not readily apparent in his vague campaign platform, though he prides himself on challenging Gov. Inslee’s leadership during the height of the coronavirus pandemic and re-opening public schools in Puyallup early.

Puyallup students, teachers, and families deserve school board leadership that trusts science, invests in all students, and keeps extremist ideas out of public curriculums. Trish Crocker is the clear choice in this race for Puyallup School Board, Director Position 2.
 

Early learning coach Amanda Cuthbert is running for Puyallup School Board, Director Position 3. Cuthbert works for an early learning organization focused on providing a kid-centric, inclusive education. She also currently serves on the Puyallup Public Library board, as board secretary for the Washington Child Care Centers Association, and as a member of the Two-Way Racial Healing Project board. 

Cuthbert has been involved with the school district as a parent, PTA member, and parent volunteer. With her professional background in early learning education and her extensive public service experience, Cuthbert is strongly qualified to bring community solutions to the school board that help students, teachers, and families thrive.  

Cuthbert is running on a platform focused on creating safe and welcoming schools. If elected, Cuthbert hopes to continue rebuilding a positive relationship between district teachers and the school board. She recognizes that all students deserve to learn in environments free from gun violence, and she wants to focus on safety measures that address persistent fears of school shootings.  

Cuthbert is facing Gretchen Miles, a social worker at a nonprofit and a Moms for Liberty candidate. Like other far-right candidates running for school board this year, she would try to impose a top-down political agenda on our kids' education. She would prevent parents from deciding which books their children should read or what health information is available to students.  

Our schools need leaders with local experience who will put the needs and safety of students before politics. Amanda Cuthbert is the clear choice in this race for Puyallup School Board, Director Position 3. 
 

Educator and community leader Davida Haygood is running for Puyallup School Board, Director Position 5 to replace Turan Kayaoglu, who is not seeking re-election. Haygood has more than 25 years of experience in education and currently works at Pierce College as the interim director of education programs. She is also a community leader in diversity, equity, and inclusion and previously organized the Two-Way Racial Healing Project. Now, Haygood also serves on the Design Review & Historic Preservation Board.

As both an educator herself and a parent, Haygood would bring an important perspective to the school board. Her priorities are centered around connecting both students and teachers to the resources they need to succeed. Haygood wants to lead with an equity lens and is determined to make sure that every student, regardless of their background, has the same support and opportunities at school. She wants to invest in student mental health and special education, while also strengthening the pathways to college and vocational schools for all students. Haygood has received an impressive slate of endorsements in this race including from elected leaders, local educators, unions, and local Democratic groups.

Haygood is running against Shannon Burch, who works in sales and analysis in the private sector. Burch is a parent to students in the district and has served as an active PTA and PTSA member. Her platform aligns with a sharply more conservative agenda in school board leadership. Burch and some fellow Puyallup school board candidates are running as a slate associated with Moms For Liberty, a far-right group that's trying to impose their agenda on public schools. They would take away the freedom for parents to choose what's best for their kids and have sought to ban books in school libraries. Burch even joined an event over the summer hosted by Moms for Liberty, which created serious concerns about what agenda she would pursue if elected. 

Davida Haygood is the best candidate in this race and deserves your vote for Puyallup School Board, Director District 5.